Second Chances
by Jamie11
Summary: New Author's Note Posted - Please Read, VERY important!!!
1. It's Only Fair to Repay the Favor

Disclaimer:   I own a 1992 Saturn SL1, a Newfoundland (that's a kind of dog – picture a black St. Bernard, only bigger.  His name is Zulu Ra, and he's my baby!  Of course, the fact that he outweighs me by a good eighty pounds and tends to hog the bed is completely beside the point.), this laptop, a few thousand books, a TV, a VCR, a stereo (not a very good one – doesn't even have an integrated CD player), a CD collection to rival Lane Kim's, enough clothes to keep the Salvation Army operating for a decade, and a pleather coat.  In other words, I don't own ANY of the characters.  (Yep – everyone who's mentioned in the story really is or has been on the show!  Heheheh), I have no rights to or affiliation with Camden Military Academy (which is a real military school, located in Camden, South Carolina.).  I'm not even totally sure the plot line is original.  I think it is…but, one of my favorite sayings is, "Everything's already been thought of once.  The difficulty lies in thinking of it again."  Oh yeah – if anyone's planning on suing me, don't bother, I work for 16 really good attorneys. 

Anyway, read on, I hope you enjoy the story.  Also, please forgive – it's my very first fan fiction, and was written between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.  I am open to all kinds of pointers, suggestions, remarks, comments, criticisms, advise, etc., though I'm not going to attempt to bribe or browbeat anyone into reviewing.  I will most likely continue the story, and continue posting, whether I get any feedback or not.  I would just really appreciate it if everyone who reads this story does at least take the time to click the little review button, and at the very least, tell me you've read the story.  

It's set sometime in the 3rd season.  I'm going to try and have it run parallel to the actual show, but no promises.  Everything that happened on the show has happened in this story.  (Except for the 1 episode I've missed – this week's episode, I think it was a new one, only I thought at the time that it was a pe-reat, and so didn't watch it.  I went Christmas shopping instead.)  Alrighty – this is the end of my very long-winded author's note, I think.  I do promise that there will never ever ever be an a/n this long again.  Oh yeah…Italics mean someone's thinking, quotes mean someone's speaking, though I tried to be really careful about making that clear.  (Hence the 6 hours to write 3 pages.)

I think this is going to be a T/R, cuz I just like Tristan the best.  (I heard a rumor that Chad Michael Murray is returning to the show.  If anyone has any solid information one way or the other, please let me know?)  However, one of my friends may or may not be collaborating with me in the future, and she's a die-hard Jess fan, so we'll see.  (She may want to write herself in, as Jess's love interest…lol)  Also, neither of us can stand Dean, so whether I continue this solo or with my buddy, and regardless of what happens on the show, he's not going to be getting back together with Rory in this story.  I may actually have to have something freakishly bizarre kill him off, because he has annoyed me since Day 1.  Anyway – this really is the end of my rambling.  (I think the author's note may be longer than the chapter, but I had to say the stuff, y'know?  Forgive and forget, and most importantly, read on!)

SECOND CHANCES

CHAPTER ONE – A NEW BEGINNING

Snapping the locks on his suitcase shut, he took one last look around the barracks.  Oddly enough, he felt almost…sad? to be leaving this place.  He was going home today.  Home?  No, that wasn't it…Hartford wasn't his home, any more than Camden Military Academy had been.   He wondered briefly which school his parents had decided he would attend for his senior year.  Oh well – didn't really matter, anyway.  He'd find out sooner or later.   After all, what was one more year?  After that, he'd be on his own…or, at least, have the option of being on his own.  He sighed.  Could he do it?  Could he walk away from his family, his name, his life?  He'd been so certain before…but now, he wasn't as sure.  He shrugged, and headed out the door.

The Next Day

He stood in front of the forbidding oak doors, and took a deep breath.  He never would have dreamt that his parents would choose to send him back here.  For that matter, it was equally surprising that the school allowed him to come back.  He took another deep breath, and opened the door.  

Half an Hour Later

"Mr. DuGrey.  Sit."  The headmaster paced behind his massive desk.  "As you are no doubt are aware, your grandfather pulled many strings and called in many favors to have you readmitted to this institution.  However, that is as far as it goes.  Re-admittance.   Whether or not your attendance is continued is entirely up to you.  Any repetition of your previous antics, and you will be expelled.  After all, failure is a part of life – but not a part of Chilton.  Is this understood?"

"Yes, Sir." 

"Good.  Miss James has your schedule."

"Thank you sir.  I'll do my best."

"I have my doubts as to whether your best is actually up to par."

"It will be, sir."

20 Minutes Later

He had gotten his schedule and books, and had gone to his locker.  He was now on his way to his first class back at Chilton.  Advanced British Literature, with Mr. Remmy.  He sighed.  He seemed to be doing that a lot.  _Okay, DuGrey – moment of truth.  No turning back.  _He took a deep breath, and walked into the classroom.

Mr. Remmy paused mid-lecture, and glanced at the door.  "Mr. DuGrey.  Welcome back.  If you'll take your seat, we'll continue with today's lesson."  He indicated the only empty desk in the classroom…right next to…Rory Gilmore.  

At the mention of Tristan's name, Rory looked up from her notes.  Sure enough, there he was.  Walking towards her.  Looking at her.  Two pairs of blue eyes locked, and a thousand words were exchanged in a matter of seconds.  Greetings, apologies, forgiveness, questions, answers.  

The two spent the rest of the period stealing glances at each other.  Rory was surprised to find that Tristan actually seemed to be paying attention, and taking notes.  He even went so far as to ask for clarification on points the class had covered before his return.  _How'd he get back into Chilton?  I thought he was gone for good.  Oh well.  Seems like military school's done him good.  He looks like he's actually trying to LEARN.  I wonder if he's still a jerk? God I hope not…this year's tough as is – I don't need Bible Boy making it worse!_

For his part, Tristan tried desperately to focus on the lecture, but couldn't seem to shake the awareness that she was there, next to him.  So close.  _She's as beautiful as ever.  Maybe more.  I wonder if she's still with Bagboy?  Well, even if she is…it's gonna be different this time.  No more Mary, no more smirks, no more innuendos.  She's not going to hate me this year, no matter what it takes._

The End of Class

Mr. Remmy glanced at the clock. "Well, folks, that's all the time we have for today.  Remember, your papers are due Wednesday, and the test will be Friday.  No make-ups, no exceptions.  Mr. DuGrey, Ms. Gilmore, I'd like to have a few words with you."  

 Rory and Tristan both stood, and after gathering their notes and books, walked to Mr. Remmy's desk.

"Mr. DuGrey – I'm sure you recall just how difficult my classes tend to be.  Ms. Gilmore has the honor of holding the highest grade in this class.  I understand the conditions of your re-admittance to Chilton, and so would suggest that you allow her to help you get caught up, and prepare for this Friday's test, which you will have to take.  However, I will give you some leeway.  The other students have had a full week to work on their research papers.  You can hand it in Friday before class.  Ms. Gilmore, I hope you will be willing to assist Mr. DuGrey?"

Rory nodded.  "Of course, Mr. Remmy.  After all – he offered me his notes from your class on my first day at Chilton.  It's only fair to repay the favor."

Tristan inwardly groaned…_She had to bring that up, didn't she?  God – I was such an ass to her!  Well, I won't be this time. _"Thank you, Mr. Remmy, for the extended deadline on the paper.  I will try to get it to you on Wednesday, but I'll definitely have it by Friday.  And, thanks, Rory, for your help."

Rory smiled at Tristan.  _He called me Rory?  Maybe military school DID do him good.  Nah, it's probably just the fact that Remmy's here.  I wonder what conditions his re-acceptance has?  _"Welcome back." She turned, and walked out of the room.

"Thanks." Tristan murmured under his breath, before shouldering his backpack, and following her into the crowded hallway.  

 His other classes went by fairly quickly.  Everywhere Tristan went, he was bombarded with people welcoming him back.  By the end of the day, he was exhausted, and almost wished he was back at Camden…at least there, the exhaustion was physical.  

End of the Day

He had made it almost to his car before he remembered; he hadn't seen Rory again since Remmy's class that morning, and so hadn't gotten her notes, or arranged a time to study.  He turned back to the school, only to find her just a few feet behind him.  

She grinned at him somewhat sheepishly.  "Sorry, Tristan – I was in such a rush this morning, I completely forgot to give you my notes.  And then the rest of the day has been so hectic, what with the Franklin and a student council meeting and all."

Tristan frowned, puzzled.  "Student council?  I didn't know you were on that."  

Her grin brightened, and her eyes sparkled with hidden laughter.  "Oh yeah – you weren't here last year.  Paris browbeat me into running with her.  I'm vice-president; she's president.  Anyway, due to the inanities of Louise, Madeline, and Francie, the student council meeting ran over, and I missed my bus.  So, you can give me a ride home, we'll get coffee, and go over the stuff for the test on Friday.  Whaddya say?"

He smiled at her.  "Sure, that's cool – but, won't your boyfriend get upset?"

Rory shook her head.  "Nah, Jess won't care."

Tristan cocked his head to the side, confused once again.  "Jess?  Thought his name was Dean."

She blushed.  "Dean and I broke up – I'm with Jess, now."

Tristan shrugged.  "Okay – well, get in."


	2. We Have Menus, I Think

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who's reviewed so far…wow, I had no idea how much reviews can make your day!!!  I've changed my profile so that now I can accept anonymous reviews.  Thanks for the tip, Dawnmeister.  Also – I don't intend to characterize Dean as a jerk…I'm gonna try to write him the way he is in the show, which I personally think is an annoying putz.

Recap:  Tristan comes back to Chilton for senior year; Rory is asked to help get him caught up in one of their classes.  Everything that's happened on the show has happened.  This chapter picks up right where the last one let off – Tristan and Rory are on their way to Stars Hollow.

Disclaimer:  I still don't own any of the characters, I still have no rights to or affiliation with Camden Military Academy, and I'm still not sure on the originality of the plot.  

SECOND CHANCES

WE HAVE MENUS.  I THINK.

The ride to Stars Hollow was uneventful.  Neither Tristan nor Rory said much, but the silence was comfortable.

Tristan stole a peek at her out of the corner of his eye.  She was staring out the window, her chin propped up on one hand.  _Jess?  Who's that?  And what's up with breaking up with bagboy?  Hmm.  If she and this Jess character haven't been together very long, I just might have a chance with my Mary.  Mary?  No, not Mary – Rory.  Her name is Rory.  _

Rory glanced over at Tristan, then turned back to the window.  _So far, so good…he hasn't called me Mary, hasn't attempted to harass me at all.  I must say, I'm impressed with the change.  _

Tristan parked in front of Luke's, and the two walked into the diner.  Jess was standing behind the counter, once again trying to fix the toaster.

Rory's face lit up when she saw Jess.  "Hey, I'll be right back, okay, Tristan?"

Tristan nodded.  "Yeah, sure – I'll just grab us a table, and start trying to figure out exactly what I'm gonna need help with."

"Cool."  Rory walked to the counter, leaned over it, and kissed Jess.  "Hey."

Jess smiled at Rory…rather, his eyes smiled at her, and his lips curved imperceptibly.  "Hey yourself.  Who's the guy?"

"His name's Tristan.  He just started up at Chilton.  Actually, he just came back to Chilton.  I'm helping him get caught up.  Could you get us some coffee?  I'm not sure how long it's going to take."

"Yeah, sure.  You want anything else?"

Rory pretended to think for a minute, before the trademark I'm-plotting-something-evil, -insane, -and-hilarious grin spread across her face.  "Well…"

Jess cut her off before she could go into one of her spiels.  "Never mind.  You just get coffee."

Rory pouted "but…"

Jess grinned at her, an actual smile this time "Get over there and study.  I'll bring the coffee out as soon as it's ready."

"k"

Rory walked back over to Tristan, and sat down at the table.  "Coffee'll be here in a minute.  What do you want to go over first?"

Tristan shrugged.  "I take it that's Jess?"

"Yep."

"So what happened to ba…Dean?"

She blushed, and looked a little guilty.  "It's kind of a long story…short version, Jess."

"One word – wow, you weren't kidding about the short version.  But, if he took you away from Dean, isn't he worried someone's going to do the same to him?"

A mixture of emotions played across Rory's expressive face – worry, confusion, anxiety, apprehension.  Before she could respond to Tristan's question, Jess arrived, with two cups of coffee.

"Here ya go" Jess set the cups on the table, then looked at Tristan.  "Did you want anything else?" 

Rory opened her mouth to speak "I wa-"

Jess cut her off one more time "Sorry, I was talking to him.  I know what you want." He gave her an impish wink.

Tristan smirked.  "He sure has you figured out, Ma… Rory!  I'm Tristan, by the way.  And what's good here?"

"Jess.  And, we have menus.  I think."

Rory spoke up again "We'll just have two burgers and fries."

"Ok."  Jess turned, and walked away.

"I have to admit, Rory, he's a definite improvement.  Much closer to your height."

Rory looked at Tristan suspiciously.  She wasn't quite sure how to take his comment.  With an inward shrug, she opened up her binder.  "Anyway, where do you want to start?"

A Couple of Hours (and several pots of coffee) Later

Tristan leaned back in his chair, stretching.  "I think that's about all I can take today."

Rory nodded her agreement.  "My eyes are starting to turn blurry.  Hey, you wanna go to my house and watch a movie?"

Tristan looked at his watch.  "Thanks for the invitation, but I think I should be heading home.  I still have other homework to do."

Rory hid the quick pang of disappointment she felt.  "Okay, well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow in class, then." 

Tristan stood, and gathered his books.  "Thanks for all your help.  See ya."

On an impulse, Rory leaned over, and gave him a quick hug.  "Welcome back, Tristan…I mean that."

Tristan grinned at her, and headed towards the door.

"Hey, Tristan, wait.  You forgot your…" A loud crash interrupted Rory, and she looked up.  Tristan had evidently turned around when she called him, and walked straight into Dean.  Both boys were sprawled on the floor.  Books and papers were scattered everywhere.


	3. That Went Better Than It Could Have

Continued thanks to everyone who's reviewed.  Like I said in my original author's note, reviews are not mandatory, I'm going to finish the story regardless, but they are most definitely appreciated!!!  

Further note.   All of the chapters (including this one) so far take place on the same day.  I think this will be the last chapter to take place on Tristan's first day back at Chilton, but there may be one more.  For clarification purposes (in my own head), Tristan started at Chilton on a Monday.  

Anyway…here it is, what you've all been waiting for, the encounter between Tristan and Dean.  Drum roll, please.  Hehehe

Disclaimer:  I still don't own any of the characters, and am still not completely convinced about the plot.  (Though, one reviewer has assured me that it is unique.)

SECOND CHANCES

THAT WENT BETTER THAN IT COULD HAVE.

Tristan shook his head, rose to his knees, and began gathering the books and papers.  "Hey, man, sorry about that.  I should've been watching where I was going."

Dean also got up, and attempted to help Tristan straighten the mess on the floor.  "It's cool, I wasn't looking, either."  At that point, he glanced up, and finally recognized just whom he had run into.  "What are YOU doing here?"

Tristan couldn't help himself; he smirked, and responded, "Aw, did you miss me that much?  I'm touched, really I am."

"Right.  Well, if you don't get the hell out of here, I'll make sure you're 'touched,' idiot."

"Is that so?  I would've thought you'd have gotten over hating me so much, considering you aren't even with Rory anymore."

Dean glared at Tristan.  Then, as though deciding he (Tristan) wasn't worth it, he stood, and walked over to the counter.  "Taylor asked me to drop this stuff off for Luke.  Something to do with the new soda shop, I think," he said icily to Jess, shoving an envelope towards the other boy.

"Whatever."  Jess replied, without even looking up from the toaster he was once again attempting to repair.

Dean turned, and stared at Rory, who had gone to help Tristan finish shoving his things into his backpack.  Tristan glanced up, just in time to see the look of hurt and longing on Dean's face.  Dean sighed angrily, and stormed out of the diner.

Jess, Rory and Tristan all stared after him.  

"Well, that went better than it could have, I suppose."  Rory said with a relieved smile.  

Tristan shook his head.  "I'm guessing the break up was not friendly.  Let me see if I've got this right…you left Bagboy for Jess, and Bagboy still isn't over it?"

Jess spoke up before Rory had a chance to respond.  "Actually, he dumped her in the middle of a town dance marathon.  We got together a few days later."

"Huh.  You don't say."  Tristan stood up, having finally gathered all of his belongings into his backpack.  "Well, as much fun as this evening has been, I do believe it's time for me to bid you all adieu.  Once again, thanks for all your help, Rory.  It was nice meeting you, Jess."  He walked out, without waiting for a reply.

"Alone at last."  Jess smiled at Rory, a real smile; the one he saved only for her, and only when no one else was around. 

"Whatever shall we do to entertain ourselves?" Rory asked mischievously.

Jess sighed regretfully.  "I don't know about you, but I'm stuck closing this place up.  Luke left earlier, and said he wouldn't be back til late."

"Awww." Rory pouted.  "I guess I'll just have to go home, and watch Willy Wonka.  Come over when you're done?"

"Yeah, sure." 

"Bye."

"Bye."

After kissing Jess goodbye, Rory too left the diner.

As soon as she disappeared from view, Dean came back inside.  

"Jess.  I need to talk to you."

"Really.  And what could you possibly have to say to me?"  Jess asked sardonically.

"It's about that guy…Tristan.  You should watch out for him."

"And why is that?"

"Cause he has a thing for Rory.  If you're not careful, you're gonna lose her the same way I did."

"I'm not worried."

"Maybe you should be."

"Thanks for the warning, but I think I've got it covered.  Now, unless you have anything else of earth-shattering importance to say, we're closed."

"Whatever dude.  Just remember, I tried to warn you."  

"Much as I appreciate that, I have to wonder about your motivation."

Dean sighed.  "Look, man – I know I've been an ass.  I just…I'm just trying to do the right thing.  Watch out for Tristan."  He turned, and left without another word.

Jess shrugged, and continued closing the diner.

A/N

HA!  Whaddya think of that?  Bit of a shocker, isn't it?  Dean attempting to look out for Jess's interests?  Honestly, that's how I think it would go…Dean would try to do the right thing.  That's one of the reasons he's soooooooooooo annoying!

And, since I got the Tristan/Dean and Dean/Jess encounters both into the same chapter, this is the end of Tristan's first day at Chilton.


	4. The Gospel According to Mark

Yet again, thanks to everyone who's reviewed, especially repeat reviewers, like Dawnmeister and Firegoddess.  They make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, like a Wuzzle.  (Does anyone else remember Wuzzles?  Have you hugged a Wuzzle today?)

Disclaimer:  I have a bunch of Christmas presents under the tree, but I'm willing to bet that none of them contain any of the characters from the show.  (I even specifically asked that my brother buy George Clooney on a grocery trip once…much to my disappointment, he came home without G.C.  sniff, sniff, sob, sob.)

This chapter happens a couple of weeks after the first 3 chapters.  Recap:  Tristan came back to Chilton, and Rory was asked to help him get caught up in one of their classes.  The two went to Luke's (where else?) to study.  At Luke's, Jess and Tristan met, and were friendly with each other.  Dean also showed up at Luke's, and had a not-so-pleasant encounter with Tristan.  After said encounter, Dean attempted to warn Jess that Tristan had a thing for Rory.   During the following weeks, Tristan and Rory were friendly in school, but did not hang out much.  The one night of studying at Luke's was enough to get Tristan caught up in class, so they didn't get together to study again.

SECOND CHANCES

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK

She slammed the door of her locker with a sense of finality.  It had been another long, stressful, frustrating day.  She couldn't wait to get home.  She needed coffee.  Lots of coffee.  And Jess.  Jess.  Just thinking about him brought a smile to her face; she could already feel the muscles in her shoulders relaxing.  She smiled, quite probably her first smile all day, slung her backpack over one shoulder, and headed towards the door, her bus, and home.

"Rory!  Hey Rory!  Wait up!"  Tristan called after her.

She stopped, and turned to look at him.  "Hey, Tristan.  What's up?"

Tristan caught up with her, reached over, and grabbed her backpack.  "Here, let me carry that – you look like you're about to fall over!  Long day?"

"You have no idea."

"Well, hey – maybe this'll perk you up.  My parents decided to go out of town again.  They left yesterday.  So, party tonight, at my house.  Bring Jess and Lane.  Or, let me give you a ride home, and I'll invite them."

"A party?  I don't know…Jess isn't really into the social scene.  Plus, getting Lane out might be tricky."

Tristan shrugged.  "I'll give you a ride home, and ask them myself.  And, we'll work out a way for Lane to go, if she's interested."

Rory nodded.  "Okay.  Let's get going, though…no offense, but this conversation is keeping me from my coffee."

Tristan laughed.  "There are hot lines for addictions like that, y'know."

She grinned back at him.  "It's not an addiction…Coffee is the elixir of life."

"I dunno…you display all of the classic symptoms of coffee-ism."

"Coffee-ism?  Okay, that's a stretch, even for you!"

Tristan faked a hurt look.  "You wound me, Rory!  Besides, it's all I could come up with on such short notice.  Give me a few minutes, I'll do better."

"Riiiight."  

Tristan and Rory continued their light-hearted banter in the car, and shortly pulled up in front of Luke's.  

"No, no, no, and no.  Oh, and one more thing, Taylor.  NO."  Luke was saying as Tristan and Rory walked in.  

"Honestly, I don't know why you have to be so difficult!" Taylor responded.  "As head of the Stars Hollow Upgrading the Town and Unifying the People committee, it's my responsibility to…"

"Taylor, you're head of a committee called SHUT UP.  There is NO way I'm letting you put a billboard to that effect on my store!"

"Well.  We'll just have to take this up at the next town meeting."

"Yeah, well, big shocker coming here…my answer will still be NO."

Rory and Tristan looked at each other, and started laughing hysterically.  

"Hey, Luke…I would've thought that you'd love a sign that said 'Shut up'!"

"If you're not careful, Rory, I'll cut off your coffee supply."

"Being careful now.  Is Jess here?"

"Upstairs.  Go on up."

"Thanks!  C'mon, Tristan."

The two ran up the stairs.  Rory knocked on the door, but knew that Jess wouldn't be able to hear it over the Metallica blasting inside, so she opened it, and they went inside.

Jess was lying on his bed, reading.  An evil grin spread across Rory's face, and she made a big show of tiptoeing over to the bed.  She leaned over, and was reaching to tickle Jess's waist, when Jess rolled over, grabbed her wrists, and pulled her down on top of him.  She let out a squeal, which he promptly quieted with a kiss.  

Tristan stood in the doorway, watching.  _She really cares about him, doesn't she?  And…he cares about her, too.  I wonder…if I hadn't gone to military school…would it have been me?_  He watched as their kiss deepened, and Jess's hands started rubbing Rory's back.  He cleared his throat, suddenly uncomfortable watching them.

Rory sat up almost immediately, blushing.  "Sorry, Tristan."

Jess too sat up, and leaned over to look past Rory.  "Oh, hey, man, what's up?"

Rory turned back to Jess.  "He's having a party tonight, and invited you, me, and Lane."  

Jess frowned.  "Huh.  Parties aren't really my thing."

Tristan spoke up.  "That's what Rory said, but I thought I'd extend the invite, anyway.  It'll be fun…we've got a pool table, hot tub, pool-"

Jess cut him off.  "A pool?  It's December."

"Indoor, and heated.  It's cool if you don't want to go, though."

Jess shrugged.  "Like I said, it's really not my thing.  But, hey, Rory – if you want to go, that's cool with me.  I can put in some extra hours at the diner."

Rory looked concerned.  "You sure?  I mean, I don't have to go…"

"Go.  Party.  Have fun.  Make sure Lorelei knows that I'm not there, so that she can't blame me for anything that happens."

Rory chuckled.  "Yeah, she can…she'll blame you for not being there to protect me."

Jess snorted.  "Yeah, you're right.  It's a lose-lose situation with her."

Rory shook her head.  "She'll come around eventually…I'm really glad that you're at least trying to get along with her." 

"Well, you know…" Jess looked a little embarrassed.  "Hey, you guys should probably go start trying to figure out how to get Lane out of the house tonight."

Rory nodded.  "Okay…see you later, then."  She leaned over, and kissed him again.

"Later."

Jess watched from the bed as Tristan and Rory walked out.  _Watch out for Tristan, huh?  Nah.  Bagboy's crazy.  Even if he has a thing for her, she certainly isn't into him.  I mean…I'd be able to see it if she was.  Wouldn't I?_  He gave himself a little shake, and turned back to his book.  After a few minutes of staring at the pages, he finally slammed it shut and tossed it aside.  _Screw this.  I'm going for a walk._

TRISTAN AND RORY – LANE'S HOUSE

"Hi, Mrs. Kim, is Lane here?"  Rory asked politely.  Mrs. Kim had always scared her a little.  

"Upstairs.  You have 10 minutes." Mrs. Kim responded curtly.  She looked at Tristan.  "You wait here."

"Yes, ma'am."  Tristan replied with a smile, as Rory ran up the stairs.  "We were just coming over to invite Lane to join my Bible study group tonight.  There's a play in Hartford, re-enacting the Gospel according to Mark."

At that point, Lane and Rory came down the stairs.

"Lane.  You're going with Tristan and Rory tonight.  Pay close attention."

Lane looked puzzled.  "Mama…"

Tristan interrupted Lane. "Mrs. Kim, I believe that they're going to do the other three gospels as well, one each week.  Next Friday is the Gospel according to Luke."

Mrs. Kim frowned.  "Good for Lane to see.  Lane, you will go see all of these plays."

Lane smiled at Tristan.  "Yes, mama."

Tristan grinned back at her.  "We should be going, now.  We wanted to reread the gospel before the play.  Mrs. Kim, our bible study group likes to go out for tea after each meeting, to discuss the Scripture in a more relaxed setting.  We typically don't get home until fairly late.  Is that alright, or did you want me to bring Lane home immediately after the play?"

"That is fine.  Wake me up when you come in, Lane.  I want to hear all about this play."

"Yes, Mama."

The three teenagers turned, and scurried out of the house.  As soon as they reached the sidewalk, they took off, running to Rory's.

"Ohmigod that was incredible!!!!" Lane gasped, once they reached the crap shack.  "I love you forever!!! You just got me out of the house for the next 3 Fridays!  With no curfew!!!!!"

Tristan laughed.  "All in a good day's work.  And, the story is completely airtight.  There really IS a bible study group putting on plays of the 4 gospels in Hartford."

"And how would you know this, Bible Boy?"  Rory asked.

"I have my ways.  Plus, we have witnesses who will testify that all 3 of us were there, if asked.  So, you're completely covered, Lane, provided you don't get drunk at the party."

"No worries there…I don't drink."

"Then it's all good."

"Not quite…" Rory interjected.  "I kinda forgot that tonight's Friday."

Tristan frowned.  "Yes, tonight's Friday…hence, the party."

"Yeah – I've got dinner with my grandparents.  And they aren't as willing to believe in a biblical play as Mrs. Kim."

Lane shrugged.  "You can get out of it.  Can't you?  I mean, we have Mr. Brilliant here…by the way, you are my new hero.  Did I mention that I love you?  Forever?"

Tristan smirked.  "I believe you did mention it, briefly.  But, you probably shouldn't say anything tonight…I'll confess, it wasn't my idea to invite you to the party, nor did I come up with the excuse for Mrs. Kim."

Lane looked confused.  "Who's idea was it, then?  And who did come up with the excuse?"

"I've said too much.  It's a surprise…let's just leave it at that.  How're we gonna get Rory out of dinner?"

Just then, the jeep pulled into the driveway, and Lorelai fell out of the door. "ow, dammit." She muttered, as she picked herself off the ground  "Offspring!!!!  You will love me forever as soon as I tell you what I have to tell you!  I mean, total goddess worship here.  You will fall to my feet, and beg to be allowed to offer me coffee.  This is good.  This is incredibly, unbelievably, amazingly, inspired-ly-"

"MOM!"  Rory shouted.  "Just tell me already!"

Lorelai pouted.  "Hey, no fair.  I was on a roll!"

"Moooooom…."

"Fine.  I got us out of Friday dinner."

"Really!?!  Wow!  I love you forever!  How'd you do it?"

"I called my mother, and explained that we had both had very long, stressful weeks, and asked if we could reschedule Friday dinner to Saturday, just this once."

"And she fell for that?"

"Actually, no.  She told me that rescheduling would be more convenient for her, as well."

"So basically…you didn't get us out of Friday dinner, she let us off the hook."

"Hey!  Don't go knocking the accomplishment!  Hi Lane, Hi…Tristan?"

"Hi Lorelai."

"Hi, Ms. Gilmore.  It's good to see you again."

"Call me Lorelai, and tell me, Rory, why is Bible Boy sitting on our front porch?"

"Uh…He invited us to a party tonight."  Rory replied.

"Oh.  Well then.  Are you going?"

"Since you so cunningly got us out of Friday dinner, I thought I would."

"Okay.  Don't stay out too late."

"We won't.  See ya later, mom!"

"See ya.  And I want details tomorrow!  Like, how'd you get Lane to be able to go?"

"Tristan did it.  And, no worries, you will get the full, blow-by-blow version tomorrow.  Oh yeah.  We're going to see a bible study group put on a play of the Gospel according to Mark."

Lorelai guffawed.  "Okay, now I DEFINITELY need details tomorrow!"

"Of course!  I wouldn't hold out on you, Goddess.  Might I offer you some coffee now?"

"Actually, I'll just go to Luke's and get some."

"We need to go over there, too.  That's where Tristan left his car."

"So, let's go."

The four started walking to the diner.

A/N:  Whew!  Longest chapter yet…and I thought this one was going to be short, cuz I was struggling for inspiration!  This will probably be the last chapter for a while.  Sorry to those of you who have become as addicted to this story as I am.  (Hehehe – you have no idea how much it tickled me to see that someone else is actually addicted to my very first fan fic!)  I am beginning to think, however, that this story is going to most likely be upwards of 30 chapters…I mean, this is Chapter 4, and Tristan and Rory haven't even become good friends yet!  Though…I might just skip a couple of months…haven't fully decided yet.

Also, another note, in response to a review I got while writing this chapter.  This story is a TRory.  That's just the way it is.  However, I don't think that having 3 boyfriends in high school makes Rory a 'bicycle'.  (If it does, then I feel bad, cuz I had 3 boyfriends just in first semester of my freshman year.  And that was my SLOW semester!)  So, let's be a little realistic, okay?  It's perfectly acceptable to have multiple boyfriends.  Just not at one time.  Hehehe…okay, that was a little bit of foreshadowing…::rubs hands together gleefully::  Ah, the power!!!!!  The absolute power!!!!  (Think of Jafaar in Aladdin.   Sorry, my niece just got finished watching the movie.)

Next chapter will be Tristan's party.  And who do you suppose got Tristan to invite Lane?  Hmm…I wonder…


	5. What Plot?

Author's Note:  Thanks for the reviews, and I'll have you know, my mother has begun investigating twelve step programs for me…she thinks I'm addicted to the internet! lol  I wanted to thank one person in particular for their review – jcd1013…thanks for your suggestions; I used some in this chapter, and, no worries.  The break up between Jess and Rory will be amicable, if there is one.   I've been thinking about it, and I'm not sure I want this to really be a Trory.  It may just focus on their friendship – I'm not sure.  

I did want to say something else; a couple of people have complained about the time jumps.  I put them in the story for a reason, which is, quite frankly, this thing would get way too long and boring if it went along the lines of:  

They went to the diner.  They opened the door.  They walked inside.  They turned their heads from side to side.  They were looking for an empty table.  They saw one.  They walked to the empty table.  They each pulled out a chair.  They sat down.  Luke came to the table.  Luke asked them what they wanted to eat.  They ordered.  Luke walked away.  Luke cooked their food.  They stared at each other.  Luke came back with the food.  Luke put the food on the table.  Luke walked away.  They each took a bite.  They chewed.  They swallowed.  They each took another bite.  

See what I mean?  Very boring.  Hence, the time jumps…you guys don't want to wade through crap like that, and I don't want to write crap like that.  Just assume, as you do when watching the show, that all of the characters eat their customary meals, go to the bathroom, take showers, etc., unless otherwise stated.

Recap:  Tristan came back to Chilton for his senior year.  Rory was asked to help him get caught up in the only class they had together.  They went to Luke's to study, and Tristan met Jess.  The two boys are friendly, if not actual friends.  Tristan and Dean literally ran into each other, and Dean still has/had open hostility towards Tristan.  Dean then attempted to warn Jess that Tristan has a thing for Rory.  In typical Jess fashion, Jess blew off the warning.  A few weeks later, Tristan invited Jess, Lane, and Rory to a party.  Jess decided not to go, but the girls are attending.  Also, there's a bit of a mystery…Tristan told Lane that it wasn't his idea to invite her, but won't tell her who's idea it was.  (Okay, lame mystery, but give me a break…first attempt at suspense!)  Anyway, that's where this chapter picks up – at Tristan's party.

SECOND CHANCES

WHAT PLOT?

Lane stared around her in amazement. "Wow, Tristan – your house is incredible!!!  Rory, is your grandparents' house this big?"

Rory laughed.  "Actually, no, it's not.  They don't have the rec room, the indoor pool, or the hot tub."

Tristan also chuckled, trying to hide the embarrassment he always felt about his parents' opulence.  "My grandfather says that the Gilmores diversified, and the DuGreys solidified.  After all, we don't have the house in Martha's Vineyard, or the condo in Paris."

Lane turned to Rory with wide eyes.  "Your grandparents have a condo in Paris?"

It was Rory's turn to be embarrassed.  "Yeah, but don't get too excited about it; I've never been there, and I don't think I ever will be."

Tristan felt a jolt of remorse…he hadn't intended to embarrass Rory.  "So, are we just gonna stand here staring at my house, or are we gonna go in?  Since you both are here, I could use your help making sure everything's ready."

Lane shook herself.  "Yeah, sure, let's go.  So who told you to invite me?"

Tristan opened the door, and walked into his impressive house, calling over his shoulder, "Nice try, Lane.  But it's not gonna work.  You'll just have to wait and see."

Lane pouted, an art she had learned from Rory long ago. "Aww…that's no fun…at least play 20 questions with me!"

Tristan laughed.  "Fine.  20 questions."

"hmm…is this person male?"

"Yes – 19."

"Does this person attend Chilton?"

"No – 18."

"Okay, so that rules out Henry."

Rory interjected "No it doesn't.  You should ask if the person who asked Tristan to invite you was asking for himself, or someone else."

"Yeah, what she said!!! Was he asking for himself?"

"No.  17."

Tristan and Lane continued through the 17 remaining questions as they set up for the party, with the end result of Lane being no closer to figuring out the mystery person than when they had started playing.  

SEVERAL HOURS LATER

Everyone from Chilton, plus a few hundred other people who just happened to hear about the party from everyone at Chilton, had shown up.  The rec room, hot tub, and heated indoor pool were overflowing with teenagers.  Tristan had disappeared, playing host/referee to his guests, leaving Rory and Lane to fend for themselves.  

"So…swinging party."  Lane said somewhat sarcastically.

"Yeah…it would help if I actually knew or liked any of the people here."  Rory replied.

"Wanna bail?"  Lane suggested.

"Can't – Tristan drove us here, remember?"

"Oh yeah.  Well, how about this…we wait another half hour.  If the party hasn't improved, we call Lorelai or Jess to come get us."

"Sounds good to me."

"Lane.  You came."  A male voice said behind them.  Both girls turned, and were surprised to see…

"Dave?  What are you doing here?"  Lane asked, astonished.

 "Zach's brother went to Camden Military Academy.  He knew Tristan…they still hang out, sometimes."  Dave explained.  (Zach is a guy from Lane's band, fyi.)

"Oh.  Huh.  Small world."

"Yeah, I guess so. Anyway…wanna dance?"  Dave asked.

Lane looked to Rory for permission. 

"Go ahead, Lane.  I'll be fine.  In fact, I think I see someone I know."  Rory lied, knowing how much Lane had missed Dave.  

"Great.  C'mon!"  Dave grabbed Lane's hand, and pulled her onto the crowded dance floor as Rory watched.  She sighed, and looked around for someplace unobtrusive to sit and read.  She finally settled on a chaise that was mostly hidden by a massive potted tree.  (A chaise is a kind of lounge chair.)

"There you are, Rory.  I've been looking everywhere for you."  Tristan appeared about half an hour later, and sat down on the chaise next to Rory.  "I can see you're having a great time," he said, indicating her book.

Rory shrugged.  "Lane went off somewhere with Dave, and since I don't really know anyone else here…"

"So he found her.  Good.  Listen, if you're bored, I can take you home…" Tristan offered, hoping she would turn him down.

"No, that's okay…I'll just wait until Lane's ready to leave.  It's been a while since she last saw Dave."

"Alright.  Well…do you want to dance?  More entertaining than sitting here reading."

"No, thanks…I can't dance."  Rory replied apologetically.

"Hey, it's no sweat…c'mon…I'll put a slow song on…they're easy to dance to…you just stand there, and kinda sway."

"Well…okay…" Rory replied dubiously.

"Great!  I'll be right back…gotta go change the CD."

"Okay."

A few minutes later, Tristan returned.  Taking Rory's hand, he pulled her off of the chaise, and onto the dance floor.  There, he put his hands on her waist, and pulled her close.  Rory placed her hands on his shoulders, and looked up at him.

As they stood there, swaying in rhythm to the music, Rory spoke.  "I can't believe how much you've changed, Tristan.  Military school did you a lot of good.  What was it like?"

Tristan looked down at Rory, an odd look on his face.  "It was…different.  I don't know.  I mean, all of my life, I was known as a DuGrey.  No one cared about what I did, because of my family's name.  But…at Camden…no one cared that I was a DuGrey.  No one cared that I was a poor little rich boy, who never saw my parents.  I mean, everyone there was the same way.  Some of the guys hadn't been home in years.  Most of them had brothers and sisters off in different boarding schools around the country.  One guy actually had a younger brother and two younger sisters that he had never even met.  Not a single guy there had a family like the Cleavers, so no one felt sorry for me.  I didn't get any special attention at all…except scorn and disdain; they didn't pity me.  They scorned me because I pitied myself.  As my c.o. put it, 'you can't do anything about who your family is.  You can only do something about who you are.  You can either destroy yourself, and become exactly like your parents, or you can grow up, and become the kind of man you want your father to be.'  I don't know…it made me think.  All of my life, everyone loved me.  I mean, I was the King of Chilton, essentially.  I could do anything I wanted, and get away with it.  At Camden…it wasn't the headmaster, or the drill sergeant that you feared.  It was the other guys in your battalion, cause if you screwed up, you made _them_ look bad.  So they didn't tolerate anyone screwing up, or screwing around.  Took me about a month to figure out that I really needed to clean up my act, if I wanted to survive.  After that…it didn't take much longer for me to begin actively trying to be who I wanted to be."

Neither Rory nor Tristan noticed that the music had ended during Tristan's speech, or that they were now standing in the middle of the crowded dance floor, just holding each other.

Rory spoke softly.  "I see…I'm glad you decided to 'grow up,' as you put it…I'm sorry the lesson had to be so hard."

Tristan shook his head earnestly.  "But…that's where you're wrong.  It wasn't hard at all.  It was the easiest thing I've ever had to do.  Coming back here, back to Chilton…that's what was hard.  Facing my past.  I knew that everyone here would expect me to be just like I was before; everyone would expect me to be a chauvinistic jerk.  It's been really hard getting everyone to see and believe that I'm not like that anymore.  This is the real me.  The person you knew before…that was…I don't know.  The counselor at Camden thought it was a defense mechanism.  He said that I acted like that to drive away the people I cared about.  And it makes sense, in a way.  I mean…I never got close enough to anyone to actually care about them, but the ones I thought I could care about were the ones I tried hardest to drive away.  Like you."

"Me?"

"Yeah…I mean, at first, you were just another cute girl that I expected to fall at my feet and worship me.  When you didn't, it…intrigued me.  I started trying to get to know you, but by then, you already hated me.  But…even though you hated me, you were still nice to me.  You still…tried to encourage me to be better, to be more than what I was.  That's why, when I came back, I promised myself that no matter what it took, you weren't going to hate me again.  I really need a friend like you, Rory.  You see the best in everyone; you don't see who people are, you see who they could be.  And you try to get them to be that kind of person."

Rory blushed.  "I didn't know I had that effect on you.  And, Tristan…I never hated you; I mean, I didn't like you all that much, but hate…that's a really powerful word, and it's one I shouldn't have used.  But…the past is in the past.  I'd like to be friends, and get to know the new you."

Tristan grinned at her, and then looked around, suddenly aware of their surroundings.  "Hey…do you wanna go ahead and get out of here?  Go get a cup of coffee or something?  We can find Lane and Dave, and see if they want to go, too."

Rory pulled away from Tristan, and glanced at her watch.  "Wow – I had no idea it was so late.  I think that we should find Lane, but she and I should probably just go home.  Rain check on the coffee?"

Tristan nodded.  "Sure.  Let's go."

They found Lane and Dave making out on the chaise where Rory had been reading.  

"Hey, guys."  Rory said, leaning over to tap Dave on the shoulder.  "Sorry to interrupt, but we really need to get out of here."

Lane sat up, blushing, and looked at her watch. "Oh my god…my mother's going to freak!!!"

Tristan shook his head in disagreement.  "You don't have a curfew, remember?"

"Oh yeah…Dave, did I tell you that I love you forever?  How on earth did you come up with the plot to get me out of the house tonight?"

Dave looked confused.  "What plot?"

It was Lane's turn to look confused.  "Didn't you ask Tristan to invite me?"

Dave shook his head.  "No…Zach told me that you might be here.  I didn't even know you knew Tristan."

Rory, Dave, and Lane all turned to Tristan.

"Okay, if it wasn't your idea to invite me, and it wasn't Dave's, who was it?"  Lane demanded.

Tristan looked embarrassed, then grinned sheepishly.  "I asked a friend of mine from Camden about how I could get Rory to come.  Turns out, his brother Zach is in your band.  Anyway, Zach's the one who suggested I invite you, and came up with the plot.  He thought that Rory would be more willing to come if you wanted to, too."

"Oh."  Lane looked a little hurt, but tried her best to hide it.  "Well, thank him for me, will you?"

"Sure.  Anyway, we should get going."

"Yeah."  Lane responded.  She stood up, then turned and kissed Dave.  "I guess I'll see you later…Hey!  We can have band practice on Friday now!  Since I'm supposed to be in Hartford, anyway!"

"Sounds good to me."  Dave said with a smile.  "I'll let the guys know."

On the car ride home, Lane talked incessantly about Dave, and how great it was that she had gotten to see him, and how cute he was, etc., etc., etc.  Rory mumbled her responses, looking oddly distracted, a fact that Lane missed entirely.  Tristan, on the other hand, picked up on it right away.  _I wonder what's on her mind?  She's been awfully quiet, ever since…since we found Lane and Dave making out.  That's it…she's probably just thinking about Jess.  I mean…I kinda got the impression this afternoon that they don't get to spend a lot of time together._

Tristan dropped Lane off first.  "Do you want me to go up with you?" 

"No, that's okay…I've got my story covered.  Thanks again, Tristan – I had a great time tonight!"  

"No problem.  We should get together to hang out again…with a slightly smaller crowd, I mean."

"Yeah, cool.  See ya later!  Bye Rory!" 

Rory shook herself out of her reverie.  "Bye Lane!  See you tomorrow."

Lane dashed up the front walk to her house. 

Tristan waited until Lane was inside, with the door firmly shut behind her, before pulling away.

"You've been really quiet.  What's on your mind?"  He asked Rory, concerned.

"Nothing.  I'm just tired."  Rory lied.

Tristan saw through the lie, but decided not to press it.  When he pulled up to her house, he turned to her.  "Thanks for coming tonight, Rory.  I had a really good time."

"Yeah, me too."  Rory said quickly, as she opened her door.

"I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever.  Bye!" She called over her shoulder as she rushed up the steps.

Tristan sighed, and once again waited until the door closed behind her before driving off.  _I'm probably just reading too much into it.  I mean…I can't really expect her to want to be best friends right away.  As long as she doesn't hate me, I'm happy._

Rory watched from the front window as Tristan sped off.  _Argh!  He makes me so angry!  What's he mean, telling Lane that he only invited her to get me to go to his stupid party!  And to think…I thought he had changed!  He's just as rude as he was before he left!  That was some story he had, about needing a friend like me.   grrr.   I actually fell for it, too! _  Realizing that she was too upset to sleep, Rory scrawled a quick note for her mother, and went for a walk, careful to close the door quietly behind her, though the temptation to slam it was incredible.

A/N – Okay, that's it for this chapter, cause if I go into Rory's walk, it will end up being waaaaaay too long. Plus, my mom's already starting to bug me about living on my computer again!  Oh yeah…no worries, Rory's not going to be attacked, or kidnapped, or abducted by aliens, or attacked by rabid squirrels or wild tree frogs.  I mean…she is in Stars Hollow, after all.  She's just going for a walk that I might time-jump over.  Sorry, I tend to be a little vindictive!  Even when I asked for exactly what I got.


	6. You Need Gum

A/N – Here's Chapter 6.  I decided not to be vindictive, so this chapter does pick up where 5 left off, with Rory going for a walk.  (Okay, so it had nothing to do with me being vindictive, and everything to do with the encounter I wanted Rory to have.  No, she's not being attacked or anything, I just wanted to focus on more of the R/J relationship.  I think it'll help me decide whether I really want this to be a Trory or not.)

Disclaimer:  I invented Gilmore Girls.  It was my idea.  This story is actually comprised of upcoming episodes.  I just wanted to get fan response before we actually started filming, to see how Tristan's return would be taken.  As the response has been overwhelmingly positive, we will begin negotiations with Chad Michael Murray soon.  As soon as I let him out of my closet, that is…

RECAP:  Tristan came back to Chilton.  Rory was asked to help him get caught up in a class.  Tristan and Jess met, and were/are friendly with each other, if not friends.  Tristan and Dean met, and while there was no violence, it wasn't pretty, either.  Dean attempted to warn Jess that Tristan had a thing for Rory.  Jess blew off the warning.  A few weeks later, Tristan had a party, and invited Rory, Jess, and Lane.  Jess begged out, but Rory and Lane both went.  Lane met up with Dave at the party, and they made out.  Tristan told Rory about military school, and asked if they could be friends.  Rory agreed, and Tristan promptly pissed her off.  Tristan took Rory and Lane home.  He thinks Rory might be upset with him, but he's not sure why.  This chapter happens the same night as Chapters 4 and 5.

SECOND CHANCES

YOU NEED GUM

Rory walked through the night, breathing deeply in the cold air.  She relished the feeling of the wind though her hair, and the cold biting at her cheeks.  _The nerve of him!  Geez.  If he wanted me to go to his party so badly, he could've just asked me.  He didn't need to go and invite my friends, too!  And then, to tell Lane that he only invited her so that I would come!  How wrong is that?  Why did he even want me to go to that party?  He pretty much ignored me the whole time!  I mean, he could've said his piece about wanting to be friends at school!  I can't believe I skipped out on a night with Jess for that.   _She stopped on the bridge, and stared out at the water.   _ Why am I so upset by this?  Lane got to see Dave, after all…and she has the next 3 Fridays free, with no curfew.  She was hurt, yeah, but she got over it pretty quickly.  I mean…he didn't mean to hurt her, did he?  _

Lost in her reverie, she didn't notice the figure walking up behind her, and gave a jump of surprise when she felt arms wrap around her waist and warm breath on her neck.

"Couldn't sleep, huh?"  Jess asked huskily.

Rory turned with a smile.  "Hey hon.   I'm just thinking.  What are you doing out here so late?"

Jess leaned down, and kissed the tip of her nose.  "I missed you."

Rory leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder, her face buried in his neck.  She sniffed, wanting to smell the clean scent that was his, and suddenly pulled back.  "Jess!  Have you been smoking again?"

Jess looked away guiltily.  "Sorry…I had a lot on my mind tonight.  Smoking calms me down, and helps me clear my thoughts."

Rory smiled gently.  "I'll forgive you this time…but what was wrong?"

Jess shrugged.  "I was just thinking about something Bagboy said a while back."

Rory frowned.  "Jess…it really is over between Dean and I…I thought you knew that."

"I do…it wasn't about…He just told me that I should watch out for Tristan."

"Jess…Tristan and I are just friends…if that.  You have nothing to worry about."

"I know…but…you said that to Dean before, too."

Rory shook her head.  "Trust me…there is no way I'll ever break up with you for Bible Boy."

Jess sighed.  "I know…it's just…what the hell.  I do trust you, Ror."  He leaned down, and kissed her again.  The kiss deepened in passion for a split second before Rory broke it off.  

"Ewwww.  Gum.  You need gum.  Yuck!"   

Jess laughed.  "Unfortunately, the 24 hour convenience store closed twenty minutes ago," he teased.

"Too bad."  She laughed, and then shivered.

Jess wrapped his arms around her tightly.  "Hey…it's cold, it's late…we should get you home."

Rory snuggled into him, ignoring the cigarette smell, and murmured  "but I'm comfy."

Jess rested his cheek on top of her head, and smiled.  _What a lucky guy I am…I knew I shouldn't have listened to Bagboy._

The two stood there like that, taking comfort in their proximity to the other, for several minutes, before Rory raised her head.  "Here's an idea," she whispered.  "Why don't we go back to my house, and watch a movie?  Since neither of us is tired, and we're both cold…"

Jess nodded agreement.  "Sure."

They moved away from each other, turned, and walked back to Rory's, holding hands.  

"You never told me what you were thinking about."  Jess said softly.

"Nothing important…just…Tristan hasn't really changed as much as I thought he had.  He told Lane that he only invited her tonight so that I would go."

"Ouch.  Maybe he really does have a thing for you, then."

"I don't know…I mean, he pretty much ignored both of us all night.  Then, when we did talk, he said that he needed a friend like me.  Someone who wouldn't see who he is, only who he can become.  I haven't really figured it out…he could've asked to be friends at school.  Why did he want me to go to his party so badly?"

"Maybe just to see if you would go?  If you hated him, you wouldn't have even considered going, no matter how badly Lane wanted to."

Rory shrugged.  "Could be.  I really don't think he likes me as anything more than a friend.  If he did, he wouldn't have invited you, too.  He didn't know that you would say no."

"Maybe you should try to be friends with him.   I know from personal experience how much good your faith in a person really can do."

"Yeah…I'll try.  I'm not going to put up with him hurting me or any of my friends, though.  You and Lane came first."

"Good to know."

By this time, they had reached Rory's house.  They went inside, and started looking at movies.

"What do you want to watch?"  Rory whispered to Jess.

"Whatever."  He replied in the same muted tone.

"Willy Wonka!"  Rory squealed gleefully.

"Shhh…you'll wake up Lorelai.  And she'll have a coronary if she sees me here this late."

"Don't you mean early?  Rory, where have you been?"  Lorelai exclaimed from behind them.

Rory looked back at her mom.  "I went for a walk, Mom…I left you a note by Fred."  

"Ah…the one place I would ordinarily see it first, if he were working."

"Fred's broken again?  What did you do?"

"Um…who's Fred?"  Jess interjected.

Rory laughed, and explained, "Fred is our coffee pot."

"Ooookaaaaay…" Jess said, with a look that clearly said "I'm not even going to try to understand the Gilmores."

"However, daughter dearest…you still haven't explained Jess's presence in my living room this late at night."

"I ran into him on the bridge.  Since neither of us could sleep, we decided to come watch a movie."  

"Alright…you are aware of the rules, though, right?"

Rory rolled her eyes.  "Yes, mom, I am well acquainted with the rules."

"Anyone care to fill me in?"  Jess inquired.

"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory cannot be viewed in this house without my presence."  Lorelai stated loftily.  "And I call the couch."

Rory popped the video into the VCR, and the three settled down to watch the movie; Lorelai sprawled on the couch, with Jess and Rory on the floor, propped up against the couch.

When the movie ended, Lorelai clambered up, and glanced down at her daughter.  Rory and Jess had both fallen asleep, leaning against one another, Jess's arm around Rory's shoulders.  She sighed.  _I may not like him, but I have to admit…he does make her happy.  _She found a blanket, laid it over the two, turned off the TV, and went upstairs to bed.  _I'll call Luke in the morning to let him know where Jess is._

A/N – sorry, I know it was kind of a short chapter, but as I said in my original a/n, I really just wanted to explore the relationship between Jess and Rory.    And no time jumps!  (Skipping over the movie doesn't count, considering I have never actually seen the movie, only read the book.)


	7. Yale Versus Harvard

A/N  - At long last, and after several attempts, I finally have Chapter 7 completed.  Geez…writer's block strikes at the worst times.  Anyway, this is a fairly pointless chapter, but oh well.  Hopefully 8 will be better.

I also have the last 2 chapters of this story written.  Hehehe.  Which brings me to my next point.  I've been asked several times whether this is an R/T or an R/J…Final answer:  NO…it's neither.  Muhahaha.  It's going to have elements of both (obviously, since Rory and Jess are already together in the story.)  More than that, you'll just have to wait and see, cuz I don't want to give away the ending (I'm really proud of that ending…I cried…but, I think it's more because it's an ending straight out of my own life than anything else…sniff, sniff, sob, sob.).  So, anyway, here we are, with my 31st attempt at writing Chapter 7…hopefully, I'll be able to actually get it written and posted.  ::fingers crossed::  Okay, hard to type with your fingers crossed…lol

Actually, just thought of something…I have decided that I don't like the title Second Chances, cuz I found another fic with the same title.  Any suggestions on a new title would be greatly appreciated.

Also…did y'all know that if you don't update, you stop getting reviews?  Though, I must say, I'm flattered…41 reviews, on 6 chapters…much better than I expected!  So thank you all!!!!!!

Another thing…I reread the whole fic, and you guys were right about the time jumps…those are annoying and distracting; I'll fix, and repost eventually.  Promise, I will…Girl Scout's honor.  Hehehe

RECAP:  Tristan comes back to Chilton.  Rory helps Tristan get caught up in a class.  Tristan meets Jess (the two are friendly towards one another.).  Tristan meets Dean…not so friendly an encounter.  A few weeks later, Tristan invites Rory, Jess and Lane to a party.  Jess doesn't go, the girls do.  Lane runs into Dave, and Rory and Tristan have a heart-to-heart, wherein Tristan asks Rory to be his friend.  Tristan immediately thereafter pisses Rory off, but doesn't really know it.  Rory and Jess have a fluffy chapter.  This chapter is the night after the party, and Rory and Lorelai are on their way to Hartford for the Friday night dinner, which in this case, has been postponed to Saturday.

Okay, Chapter 7 here we come…

CHAPTER SEVEN – YALE VERSUS HARVARD

"LUKE!!!!  COFFEE!!!"  Lorelai hollered as soon as she and Rory walked into the diner.

"No."  Luke replied, without looking up.

"Please?  Pretty please?  We're on our way to my parents' house for dinner, and I need sustenance!"  

Jess came out from the kitchen, took one look at Luke and Lorelai bickering, grabbed two Styrofoam cups, and filled them with coffee.  "Here," he grunted, handing a cup of coffee to Rory and Lorelai.

"Thanks," Lorelai muttered, as she turned, and walked out of the diner.  "I'll be in the car, Rory."

"Okay, I'll be there in a minute."  Rory set her coffee down, and wrapped her arms around Jess's neck.  "Thanks," she breathed, and kissed his cheek.

"Anytime," he murmured in response.  "Call me when you get back from Hartford?" 

"Sure thing."  She grinned at him, then turned and followed her mother out of the diner.

About half an hour later, Lorelai and Rory stood in front of the elder Gilmore residence.

"Just ring the doorbell."

"I don't wanna ring it…hey, it's not too late for you to come down with some life-threatening disease."

"Mom…do we really have to go through this every time?  The sooner you ring the bell, the sooner we can go in, and therefore, the sooner we can go home."

"But…"

"Fine, I'll ring it."  Rory reached over, and pressed the button.

Emily answered the door.  "Lorelai, Rory…late again, I see."  

"Hi, Grandma."

"Hi, Mom."

"Well, come in.  Dinner should be ready now."

The three Gilmore women walked into the dining room, where Richard was already waiting.

"Rory, Lorelai, hello."

"Hi Grampa/Dad" Rory and Lorelai said together.

"Rory, I received a phone call from Harris Fellows yesterday.  He had wonderful news for us."

"What's that, Grandpa?"

"You've been accepted to Yale.  You should be receiving your official acceptance packet in the mail later this week."

"Really?  That's great!"  Rory grinned.

"Yeah, that's great, Dad."  Lorelai commented unenthusiastically.

"I am so proud of you.  You will have a wonderful experience at Yale."  Emily chimed in.

"If she decides to go."  Lorelai muttered.

"I'm sorry, I missed that, Lorelai.  Could you repeat it, please?"  Emily inquired.

"Mom, Dad, she might not be going to Yale."

"Why wouldn't she go to Yale?"  Richard asked, sounding slightly offended.

"Um, gee, possibly because Harvard is her first choice school?"

"Have you been accepted to Harvard, Rory?"  Emily looked at her granddaughter.

"We haven't heard back yet.  So, I haven't been turned down."  Rory replied quietly.

"I hope you understand that Yale is a very exclusive school.  They're not going to hold your spot while you wait to hear back from Harvard."  Richard commented.

"I know."

"Really, Rory, dear…you've already been accepted to Yale, it's a fine institution."  Emily added.

"I know, Grandma."

"Hey!  Stop pushing Yale at her.  If that's where Rory wants to go, that's where she'll go.  But if she wants to wait until she hears from Harvard, that's her choice!"  Lorelai practically shouted.

"I for one hope that you don't wait too long.  After all, what would happen if you lose your spot at Yale, and then you don't get accepted to Harvard?  You could end up going to one of those…junior colleges.  I really don't think you should wait on this, Rory.  You should just go to Yale, and be done with it."

Rory shot her mother a pleading look.

"That's it.  If the subject of Yale versus Harvard isn't dropped right now, we're leaving."  Lorelai stated.

"Don't be ridiculous, Lorelai.  This is an important discussion."  Emily responded archly.

"No, Mom, it's not a discussion.  Where Rory goes to college is up to one person…RORY.  If she doesn't want to go to Yale, she's NOT going to go!  C'mon, Rory, let's go."

Rory stood without a word, and the two walked out.

"God, what a nightmare!"  Lorelai moaned once they were in the car.

"Mom…" Rory began softly.  "I don't want to talk about it anymore…let's just go home."

"I think this calls for a movie night, and coffee."

"Sounds good."  Rory replied weakly.

A/N – Okay, so this was a short, almost pointless chapter, but it's gotten me past my writer's block (I hope), so it was worth it.  (I think.)  I'm gonna start on Chapter Eight now.  (Maybe.)


	8. Some Teenage Soap Opera

A/N – I didn't get any responses to the last author's note I posted…that may have been due to FF.net being weird, cuz I know it wasn't letting me access some stories and chapters.  But, I'm going to attempt to write Chapter Eight on my own…sniff, sniff, sob, sob.

Regarding my recaps, as the story gets longer, so do the recaps. (Fancy that.)  So, I've decided that I'm going to leave out the obvious, cuz anyone who makes it this far already knows that Tristan's back from military school, that he and Rory were somehow thrown together, blah, blah, blah.  Anyway, I'm only going to recap whatever events are important to each new chapter.  (I will indicate which chapters I'm leaving out of the recaps, for any new readers, and in case anyone wants to take the time to go read those again.)

RECAP:  Skipping Chapters 1, 2, 3, 6 and 7.  This chapter really only deals with the events of the party in Chapters 4 and 5. Chapter 4 – Tristan invites Rory, Jess, and Lane to a party.  Jess doesn't go, but the girls do.  Chapter 5 – Lane runs into Dave at the party, while Tristan and Rory have a heart-to-heart, which consists basically of Tristan telling her what it was like at military school, and then asking her if they can be friends.  Immediately thereafter, Tristan unintentionally pisses Rory off.  

This chapter takes place the following Monday, at Chilton.

CHAPTER EIGHT

SOME TEENAGE SOAP OPERA

When Rory got to school, she found Tristan waiting at her locker, with a cup of coffee.  

"Morning, Rory.  Peace offering."  Tristan held the coffee out to her.

She ignored him as she attempted to open her locker.

"Rory – what did I do to piss you off?"

Giving up on both the locker and the silent treatment, she turned to him.  "What makes you think I'm pissed off?" she asked icily.

"Well…the fact that you didn't return any of my calls this weekend was a big hint."

"Too bad it's not one you took."

"Look…whatever I did, I'm sorry.  I thought we decided on Friday that we were going to be friends?"

"How can you say you're sorry when you don't even know what you did?"

"I'm sorry for pissing you off."

"Whatever."  Rory turned back to her battle with the obstinate locker.

Tristan reached over her head, and pounded on the locker once.  It immediately sprang open.  "You got pissed whenever we started talking to Lane and Dave at the party.  Do they have something to do with it?"

Rory sighed, and turned back to Tristan.  "You only invited Lane so that I would go.  And, as if that weren't bad enough, you actually told her that!"

Tristan was taken aback.  

Seeing that he wasn't going to respond, Rory slammed her locker shut, and stormed off, leaving Tristan staring after her.

"I knew the whole Rory and Tristan getting along thing wouldn't last," a voice said from behind him.

"Hello to you, too, Paris."  Tristan turned, and faced her.  

"What did you do this time?  Call her Mary again?" 

"No…I evidently insulted her best friend, and by extension, her."  

"Killing two birds with one stone…I'm impressed."

"Paris…" Tristan pled. 

"Alright, how'd you insult Lane?"  Paris asked with a sigh.

"Told her that I only invited her to my party so that Rory would come."

"So you do still have a thing for Rory." Paris stated flatly.

"What? No…I just wanted to talk to Rory, outside of Chilton."

"And you couldn't pick up a phone?  It's not like you don't have her number."  She replied, disbelievingly.

Tristan shrugged to hide his discomfort.  "I had some stuff to say to her…wanted to do it face to face."

Paris sighed again.  "Whatever.  Do you want me to talk to her, or are you going to attempt to handle this yourself?"

Tristan was surprised by Paris's offer.  "Would you?"

"I wouldn't have suggested it if I weren't willing to give it a try.  Though I don't know a) what good it would do, or b) why I'm even bothering myself attempting to solve the problems the two of you have, considering you'll just make her mad again within fifteen minutes of me calming her down.  On second thought, it really does seem like wasted effort on my part."

"Paris, please.  Rory won't even talk to me right now, and I honestly don't know what to say about it, anyway.  I mean, yeah, I invited Lane so that Rory would go to the party, but it's not like I wouldn't have invited her anyway.  Okay, so maybe I wouldn't have invited her, but I also wouldn't have invited her if I didn't want her to go."

Paris looked at Tristan as though he had rocks in his head.  "That made no sense whatsoever.  But, strange as it may seem, I think I understand the point that you're getting at, and frankly, my understanding of you scares me."  

"So you'll talk to her for me?"

"Yes, I'll talk to her, but I'm not making any promises that it will change anything."

"Thanks." 

"We need to get to class."  

It wasn't until after the daily meeting of the Franklin that afternoon that Paris got the chance to talk to Rory.

"We need to talk."  

"Paris, today has been a really long crappy day.  Whatever we need to talk about, can it please wait until tomorrow?"  Rory responded, sighing.

"Sorry, but I don't think it can.  I'll give you a ride home, and we can talk on the way."

"Okay, fine…What's up?"  

Paris tried to decide how exactly to broach the topic of Tristan as the two girls turned and walked towards her car.  "Rory…when Tristan first came back, you guys were getting along, and seemed like you were actually…friends.  Then, today in class, you completely gave him the cold shoulder.  What happened?"

"We were getting along because he appeared to have changed.  However, at his party on Friday, he displayed that that really wasn't the case."

"What did he do?"

Rory stopped, and turned to face Paris down.   "Why do you care so much?"

"Because Tristan is my friend, he knows you're mad at him, and he knows why, but he doesn't know how to fix it.  So he asked me to talk to you."

Rory sighed.  _Geez…I think I preferred it when no one in this school talked to me…this is something straight out of some teenage soap opera.  _"Look…it's not a big loss for Tristan and I to not be getting along.  I'll ignore him, he can ignore me, it'll work."

"Maybe it would work for you, but I think he really does want to be friends with you, Rory.  At least give him a chance to apologize."

"Fine.  If it's that important to you, I'll give him another chance.  But this is the last time."  Rory gave in, too tired to argue with Paris.  

"That's all I ask."  Paris replied with a smile.

The rest of the drive to Stars Hollow was spent in silence.

~_End Chapter 8~_

A/N – Okay, this was another crappy chapter, but I think it gives me some stuff to build off of.  I'm still looking for suggestions, though, so please review, and help a poor girl out…  I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.  Also, I know that Paris was kind of out of character, but I don't do the whole spastic totalitarian mode well, so just pretend that she has a heart.  (I think she really does, just doesn't show it.)

Also, I wanted to share a moment of outrage.  I just discovered that next week's episode of the Gilmore Girls, the first NEW episode in forever, is being pre-empted for a hockey game!!!!  Okay, yes, I do bleed Blue, major Blues fan (living in St. Louis, there's really no other way to avoid a lynching), but c'mon, I'm in total withdrawal here!  I need my Gilmore Girls!!!!!  Okay, I think it's out of my system…maybe.


	9. Chin Up

A/N – I got my first ignorant review on Chapter 8…surprise, surprise, it was from an anonymous reviewer.  (No offense to anonymous reviewers, I just think it's ironic that whoever submitted the review didn't even have the courage to sign a name.)  

Here's the deal, whoever you are…Yes, Rory may have overreacted, but that's part of the ultimate scheme of things…I didn't want her friendship with Tristan to be all sunshine and light, because to my mind, that's boring.  Also, you have to keep in mind that a) Rory is still fairly suspicious of Tristan's change, b) what he did indicates that he's still after her, c) Rory thinks that he's only after her as a conquest, and d) Rory has always been protective of her friends and her life; in her mind, Tristan basically told Lane that he used her to get to Rory, which is not calculated to make Rory happy, as it implies an utter lack of respect for her best friend, and by extension, her.  She may not be completely angry with him anymore, which is indicated by the fact that she gave in to Paris so easily, but she's not willing to let her guard down again.  She did that once, at the party, and was immediately burned.  Now, I realize that you have a right to your opinion, and I do thank you for taking your time in sharing it with me, but I do NOT appreciate your language while doing so.  In my opinion, if you can't say something without cussing, it shows a poor vocabulary, which is indicative of a lack of intelligence.  If you can't give me CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, but only cuss, don't bother reviewing; I don't want to read it.

Now, if anyone else feels that Rory acted out of character, let me know nicely (without certain 4 or 5 letter words that you can't say in school and wouldn't say in front of your 5 year old brother or sister), and give me some suggestions on how to revise it, and I will do so.  I have already stated multiple times that I don't like Chapters 7 or 8, and that I would like suggestions on how to improve them.  Suggestions, not "what the hell is rory's problem??"

Whew!  Got that out of my system…sorry, I know I may have overreacted (I tend to do that, as you guys may or may not have noticed), but that just really ticked me off.  I'm NOT going to delete the review; instead, I'm going to leave it there for the world to laugh at that person's lack of vocabulary.  Geez.  Some people.  Okay, so maybe it wasn't really out of my system all the way, but it is now, I promise.  

On a good note – I hear that, LadyPolly…the Wings must die.  Hehehe  (And I'm NOT going to apologize to people from Detroit…it's not my fault where you live!  ;-) )  Also, firegoddess…think the WB would listen if we staged a protest?  Hehehe…They could at least show Gilmore Girls some other day…like Wednesday; there's nothing good on Wednesday.  Or, instead of Gilmore Girl Beginnings on Sunday, have Tuesday's episode.

Here's Chapter 9.

DISCLAIMER:  I don't own or have any affiliation with Gilmore Girls, Yale, Harvard, the Juilliard Institute, New York University or City, AOL, MSN, Lord of the Rings, Charlotte's Web, Breyer's Ice Cream, or any other place, institution, corporation or organization I make reference to in this chapter.  (I think that if I had the choice of which one to own, I'd pick NYU, cuz then I could afford to go to school there!)

RECAP:  Skipping Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.  In Chapter 7, Rory and Lorelai went to dinner in Hartford.  Richard announced that Rory had been accepted to Yale, and would be receiving her official acceptance packet soon, which sparked a fight wherein Emily and Richard pressured Rory to go to Yale because she hasn't been accepted to Harvard yet.  The evening ended with Lorelai and Rory storming out.  In Chapter 8, Rory told Tristan why she's angry with him, so Tristan enlisted Paris's help in getting Rory to forgive him.  Paris gave Rory a ride home from school, and talked her into giving Tristan another chance.

This chapter begins right after Paris dropped Rory off at Luke's.  Also, I get the feeling it's going to be a longer chapter than those previously posted; in fact, all of the future chapters may be longer, due to what I want to include in them.  But, more on that after the chapter. 

CHIN UP

Rory walked into the diner.  She saw her mother sitting at the counter, and sat down next to her, dropping her backpack with a dramatic sigh.  

"Long day?"  Lorelai asked, trying, and failing, to hide excitement.

"ugggh. Coffee."  Rory groaned.

Luke handed her a cup without argument, also failing to hide a rather large grin.

After inhaling the coffee, Rory finally noticed the strange expressions on Lorelai and Luke's faces.  "What's going on?  Did you two finally kiss?"

"What?  No!"  Luke protested, simultaneously with Lorelai's "ewwww!"

"Then what is it?" 

Lorelai proudly handed her two large envelopes, her hand shaking.  "These came in the mail today.  We already know what one of them is, but since the other one's practically identical, I think it's safe to say we know what it is, too!"

"What are you talking…" Rory's voice trailed off as she took in the Yale and Harvard emblems.  "Oh my god."

"I know!  Honey, you got into Harvard!"  Lorelai squealed.

"We don't know that.  Harvard's rejection letters could look the same as Yale's acceptance letters.  What if it's a rejection letter?  What if I didn't get in?" Rory began panicking.

"Just open it."  Jess remarked from behind the Gilmore Girls.

Rory turned to look at him, but when she made no move to open either envelope, Jess reached out and grabbed them both.  He ripped the Harvard envelope open, and began to read:  "Dear Lorelai Gilmore:  We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Harvard University's School of Journalism."  

Rory screamed before he could finish the rest of the letter.  "OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!   I GOT IN!!!!!"  She and Lorelai both jumped up, and began bouncing, holding each other's hands, squealing.  

"Hey, if you're finished celebrating, there's more."  Jess interjected in an annoyed tone.  "It says that you got a full scholarship, Ror."

"A full scholarship?  That's great!"  Lorelai exclaimed.  "Hey, wow, I need to call my mother and tell her the good news."  She pulled out her cell phone.

"LORELAI! NO CELL PHONES!"  Luke hollered.  

"Aw, c'mon – this is a special occasion.  My baby's going to Harvard!"

Luke wavered momentarily, before stating firmly, "No cell phones."

Rory grinned at her mother, then took the Yale envelope back from Jess, and opened it.  "Hey, wow, I got a full scholarship to Yale, too."

"Aw, who cares about Yale?  You were accepted to Harvard!"  Lorelai pouted, still toying with her phone.

"I know, but it's still exciting that the top two Ivy League schools in the country BOTH gave me full scholarships."  

"You're right…that is exciting.  C'mon, let's go celebrate!"

"Movie night?"

"Eventually, but first, SHOPPING!  Since all the money I've saved for your college education can now be spent…" Lorelai responded with a grin.  "C'mon, let's go!"  She grabbed Rory's arm, and began pulling her to the door.  At that moment, Lane burst in.  

"Rory!  Lorelai!  I need your help!"  

"We need yours, too, talk while we walk, let's go!" Lorelai responded, grabbing a hold of Lane's arm with her free hand.

"The Juilliard Institute in New York called me.  I got an audition!"

"Really?  That's great, Lane!"  Rory responded, as excited for her friend as she was for herself.

"I know!  It's one of the best performing arts school in the country!  Only…" Lane trailed off.

"Only how are you going to a) get to New York for the audition, b) pay for it if you're accepted, and c) convince your mother to let you go, if we solve the problems of a and b?"  Lorelai completed Lane's sentence.

"Yeah."  Lane sighed bleakly.  "I guess it's pretty impossible, isn't it?"

"Not at all.  Chin up, Lane, you could completely wow them at the audition, and be awarded a scholarship.  If you get enough scholarships and grants, plus there's always student loans, you'll be 18 by then, and won't need your mom's permission."

"Chin up? Have you been watching Charlotte's Web again?  Without me?"  Lorelai asked, horrified.

"Sorry, mom – I couldn't sleep last night, so I sneaked a fix."

"Ah!  My daughter!  My child!  My own flesh-and-blood, watching Charlotte's Web without me!"  Lorelai huffed.

"Mom…you don't even like it." 

"I know."  Lorelai replied smugly.  "I just wanted to make you feel guilty."

All three laughed.  

"But, seriously.  How're we gonna get Lane to New York for a day?"  Rory asked. 

Lorelai shrugged.  "We'll figure it out.  For now, we shop and celebrate!"

"What are we celebrating?"  Lane asked, slightly confused.

"Rory got a full scholarship to Harvard," Lorelai responded, proud of her daughter's achievement.

"Yale, too."  Rory added, just as proud.

"Cool!  Congratulations!"  Lane squealed, hugging Rory.

By this time, they were at the Gilmore house.  All three climbed into Lorelai's jeep, and sped off, eager for an evening of shopping.

Later that night, back at the diner, Jess slowly climbed the stairs to the apartment, deep in thought.  _Rory's going to Harvard…Harvard's in Cambridge.  Cambridge is in Massachusetts.  I'm in Stars Hollow.  Stars Hollow is in Connecticut.  Wait a minute.  So what?  Lorelai will make Rory come home constantly!  At least every weekend.  So I'll still get to see her, plus I can call her.  Then there's the wonderful thing of the Internet.  I can always invest in an AOL account, or maybe MSN.  Yeah…I'll have to look into dial-up services.  I wonder if Luke would consider getting DSL?  If I pay for it?  Nah…I don't need DSL, if all I want to do is talk to Rory.  _

As he mused, he began going through the mail on the table.  Most of it was junk mail, but there was something addressed to him.  When he saw the return address, he took a deep breath, and opened the envelope.  'Dear Jess Mariano:  We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to New York University.  An informational packet regarding housing, tuition, and financial aid is being forwarded to you under separate cover.'  _Oh man.  Oh man oh man oh man.  I got in!  I got in.  To New York University.  I have to call Rory!  Wait…she's out with Lorelai, celebrating.  She's going to Harvard.  I'm going to New York University.  Massachusetts is even further from New York than it is from Connecticut.  But…she's ridden a bus to New York before.  And I can always go to Cambridge.  At least, back in New York, I won't be bumming around, working in my uncle's diner, counting the minutes until she comes home.  I'll be busy, too.  With school.  College.  I can't believe I'm going to college.  No one's going to believe it.  Except Rory.  But…wait.  I haven't even thought about how I'm going to pay for it yet.  I know my mom can't afford the tuition; I doubt Luke can, either.  What if I can't afford to go?  She'd be so disappointed for me…I know.  I won't tell her.  Not until I absolutely know I can afford to go.    I won't tell anyone._  With a sigh, he folded the letter, and reinserted it into the envelope. 

He ran a hand through his hair, and then sniffed the hand.  He grimaced at the greasy diner smell emanating from it, and in fact, his entire body.  _Ugh – I need a shower._

When he got out of the shower, the phone was ringing.  He made a dash to answer it.  "Hello?"

"Hey.  It's me."

"Hey, Rory – did you have fun?"

"Loads.  I got a bunch of new books; you'll have to come check them out."

"Okay.  Now?"

"Well, actually, I was thinking we could meet on the bridge, and just hang out for a while."

"Sure.  20 minutes?  I just got out of the shower."

"K.  I'll be there."

"See you." 

They both hung up, and Jess went to his room, to get dressed.

Exactly 22 minutes later, Jess arrived at the bridge.

"You're late."  Rory grinned at him.

"A wizard is never late.  Nor is he early.  He arrives precisely when he means to."  Jess replied with a smirk.

"Been watching Fellowship of the Rings again?"  

Jess shrugged.  "It's a good movie, even though it's not true to the book at all."

Rory grinned again.  "Even if it's not true to the book, they did a good job telling the story – the extended version DVD has all of the important parts the original left out.  And it's a LOT better than the cartoon version."

Jess sneered at the mention of the cartoon.  "Those were a joke!  You'd have thought they could at least read the books first!  I mean, Tolkien is the father of modern science fiction and fantasy as we know it!"

The two continued to discuss the books, movies, and animated movies for about half an hour, before both finally fell silent.

Jess finally broke the silence.  "So, Harvard, huh?"

"Yeah.  I can't believe I actually got in.  I mean, it's been my dream my entire life.  I was really worried for a while, that I'd get turned down.  I knew that I would get into Yale, which would make my grandpa happy, and so I've kind've gotten used to the idea of going to Yale, but…Harvard's always been what I really wanted.  And now I can go.  Mom was so excited about the scholarship, too…she wasn't looking forward to having to ask my grandparents for more money."

"Huh."  Jess replied, knowing that Rory just needed to speak her thoughts out loud, with no comments from the peanut gallery.  It was something she rarely got to do with Lorelai.

"I don't know, though.  It got to a point where I really thought that I'd be going to Yale.  I know that's what my grandparents want, and it is closer to home.  I had almost hoped that I'd either be turned down at one of them, or not get a scholarship, because that would make my decision a lot easier.  But, now, it's no easier than it was before."

"Yeah."

"If I go to Harvard, my grandparents will be really hurt.  But, on the other hand, if I go to Yale, my mom'll get mad at my grandparents again, and blame them for it."

"Huh."

"What do you think?"  She turned and looked at him.

"I think…you should go to whichever school _you_ want.  Forget about both Lorelai and your grandparents, and just make yourself happy.  You're the one who'll be stuck there for four years, not them."

Rory nodded thoughtfully.  "Yeah, I guess you're right…so now I just have to figure out what I want."

Jess smiled, and wrapped his arm around her.  "Hopefully, figuring out which school you want to go to won't take as long as figuring out which guy you liked did."

She laughed.  "Oh yeah! Guess what!"

"What's that?"

"The Juilliard Institute wants Lane to audition!  Only like a third of their applicants even get that far!"

"That's cool."

"Yeah…only problem is, how do we get her to New York?"

"Huh."  

Both fell silent again, pondering this new issue.

After a few minutes, Jess spoke up again.  "Why don't you and Lorelai invite her to go shopping with the two of you, for school clothes and supplies for you?"

Rory shook her head.  "Mrs. Kim would never go for that.  She thinks shopping is a sin, she hates my mom, and, to top it all off, she would raise the issue of why we needed to go all the way to New York, when Hartford and Boston are both so much closer?"

"Huh."

They sat there, tossing out ideas and rejecting the same, for nearly an hour, before Rory stood, and stretched.  "I should get going.  I have school in the morning."

"Yeah."

Jess and Rory turned as one, linked hands, and walked back towards the town.

After kissing Jess goodnight, Rory went into her house.

"Hey, mini-me.  Have fun?"  Lorelai asked from her position on the couch.

"Yep."  Rory responded briefly, on her way to her bedroom.

"Have any new hickies?"

"MoooOOOM!  We just talked."  Rory called over her shoulder.

"Ha!  By the way, while you were 'just talking,' Paris called about 20 times…she sounded upset about something."  Lorelai replied, using finger quotes, despite the fact that Rory had closed her door.

Rory came out of her room, having changed into pajamas.  "Did she say what was wrong?"  

"Nope, but she was very emphatic that I have you call her immediately upon your return."

"Emphatic?  Big word, I'm impressed.  Is the last a direct quote?"

"Verbatim."  Lorelai said smugly.

"Verbatim?  Mom, have you been reading my dictionary again?"

"Dammit.  You caught me!"  Lorelai laughed.  "Anyway, call Paris back.  She threatened me with gross bodily harm if I didn't give you the message."

"Fine, fine, I'll call her back.  Where's the phone?"

The search took about fifteen minutes, before Rory finally found it in the freezer, next to the now empty container of Breyer's coffee flavored ice cream.

Paris answered the phone before the first ring had finished.  

"Rory?  It's about time you called me back!"

"Hi to you too, Paris."

"Did you get it?  You got it, didn't you!  I know you did.  And you're just waiting to rub it in my face.  After all, wouldn't it be poetic justice, that you got into Harvard, and I didn't."

"What are you talking about?  You didn't get into Harvard?"  Rory finally interjected into Paris's tirade.

"No, I didn't get into Harvard.  I was rejected.  'Dear Paris Gellar:  We regret to inform you.'  REGRET TO INFORM ME?  I've worked my entire life to go to Harvard.  My mother went to Harvard; my father went to Harvard.  There's been a Gellar at Harvard every generation since the school opened!  But what do I get?  A 'we regret to inform you' letter!  And you were accepted, weren't you?  Don't lie to me; I know you got in.  Of course the great Rory Gilmore was accepted to Harvard."

"Paris, calm down.  I got turned down, too."  Rory spoke quickly, without thinking.

"You did?"

"Yeah."

"Why aren't you upset, then?"

"Because I got into Yale, instead."

"Oh.  So did I."

"So, don't worry about it.  You'll start a new tradition, of Gellars at Yale."

"Yeah, I will, won't I?  But you won't be…The Gilmores have always gone to Yale.  Except for your mother."

"Yeah.  But…I think that she would come with me, if she could."

Paris chuckled.  "It would be nice for my mom to be as obsessively involved in my life as your mom is involved in yours."

Rory grinned, even though Paris couldn't see her.  "I don't know…as independent as you are, my mom would drive you crazy.  Heck, she drives me crazy half the time."

"That's true.  So are you going to live at home, or in the dorms?"

"I don't know, I haven't really thought about it.  You?"

"Obviously the dorms.  It's bad enough that I have to live here now."

"Oh."

"Of course, living in the dorms could be worse.  You never know what kind of roommate you'll get.  Knowing my luck, I'll get stuck with some party animal who slept with every member of the admissions panel, and then paid off the dean to be accepted."

"This is true."  Rory said, not really paying attention now that Paris had calmed down.

"Hey, here's an idea.  You're not a party animal, and I know you work just as hard as I do.  We could be roommates."

"Yeah, sure."

"Really?"

"What?"  Rory suddenly realized that she had agreed to something that, judging by the level of Paris's surprise, she wouldn't ordinarily agree to.

"You want to be roommates with me?"

"What?  I mean, yeah, if I decide to live in the dorms."  Rory inwardly sighed.  She couldn't really go back on it, could she?  And Paris was right…they could at least tolerate each other.

"Great!  Well…thanks for talking, Rory, but I have to go now."

"Yeah, me too."

"Bye."

"Bye."  With a sigh, Rory hung up the phone, and climbed into bed.   _Thank god this day is finally over.  Wait a minute.  I just decided that I'm going to Yale.  I mean…I can't exactly go to Harvard now that I've told Paris I was turned down.  My mom's gonna kill me!  Worse, she's gonna kill my grandparents.  I don't think I'm going to tell her just yet…I'll think of a way that she won't get upset with them._

A/N – Well, that's it for this chapter.  What'd you guys think?  I actually left out a fairly important sub-plot, but it'll show up eventually, so that's okay.  This chapter was just getting really long.

Also, regarding the future of my story…  Inspiration struck, and I have Chapters 10 through 18 outlined, though not actually written, and I'm fairly sure what's going to happen in Chapters 19 through 28.  I'm going to aim for my original guesstimate of 30 chapters, if you guys can handle that long of a story.  In answer to a review I got a while back, yes, the breakup between Jess and Rory will be amicable (I've already got that part mostly written.), and shocker…Jess breaks up with Rory, but it has nothing directly to do with Tristan or anyone else.  It's strictly between Rory and Jess.  Beyond that, you all will just have to wait for Chapter 17.  Hehehe (I know, I'm evil, but I love every minute of it.)  After all, I can't post it til I've actually written Chapters 10 through 16, because they all lead up to the break up.  (The reasoning will be explained in Chapter 16; the actual break up is the entirety of Chapter 17.)  But, there's been a big hint regarding the breakup in this chapter.  If you can guess what's going to cause the break up, I'll give you a cookie.  Also, fair warning…Chapters 10 through 18 skip over the events of about a year.  So, don't be surprised that one chapter takes place months after the preceding chapter.  Oh yeah!  Another thing – I just re-read my ending, Chapters 29 and 30, and I realized that they leave the story WIDE open for a genuine Trory sequel, so if you guys want it, I will write it.  (I did already mention that this story is NOT a Trory, didn't I?)  Oh yeah – I also said in my very first author's note, at the beginning of Chapter 1, that I wasn't going to be introducing made-up characters, but instead was going to use only those from the show; well, that changes around Chapter 14, because it's either invent characters, or wait until next fall, which I'm not going to do, because chances are, the actual show won't follow my storyline.  So, I'm sorry that I'm going back on my word.  However, most of my made-up characters will not play a major role in the story; they're just there because they have to be.  There is one new character that will become a semi-major character, but he/she will not be a Mary Sue, or Mary Jane, or whatever you want to call the new character that everyone loves and who sleeps with an existing main character and then dies a tragic horrible death, leaving said existing main character to mourn him/her.  (No sex, no death, and not everyone will like said new character.)  Also, chapters 14 through 18 kinda skip back and forth between story lines, obviously, since this chapter revealed that Jess (yes, he does figure out how to pay for NYU) and possibly Lane are going to be in New York, while Paris and Rory are in New Haven, and where's Tristan going to be?  (That was the sub-plot I left out – almost spilled the beans here!  Hehehe), but I'm going to do my best to tie up the loose strings as quickly as possible.  Did I mention before that this story takes place over the course of about 4 years?  Well, it does…it begins in the middle of first semester of senior year, and ends right after junior year in college.


	10. Less Talking, More Walking

A/N  I just posted Chapter 9 a few minutes ago, but considering it's 2:30 a.m., and I can't sleep, I thought I'd go ahead and start Chapter 10.  It's now 3:30 a.m., and I just got my first review on Chap. 10.  Concerto – I admit it, I know nothing about the Juilliard Institute; I heard the name in a movie once, I think, and I know that it's a performing arts school in New York – that's it.  So, even if it's a bit unrealistic, pretend with me, k?  K.  The other option was that I send her to Mizzou, because I have about a thousand friends who are music majors there, so I actually know that school, but I didn't want her to end up in the middle of Missouri.  (Trust me, it's not as much fun as it sounds.  I've lived here my whole life.  Not a whole lot to do til you hit 21.  Especially if you've just moved here and have no friends – can be very boring.)

Oh yeah!  I promised to start advertising someone else's story, that I'm editing, cause she started advertising mine, but I forgot in the last chapter.  Check out "I'd Do Anything" by Skinny.  It's good, I promise.  (And she fixed Chapter 5, so it makes sense now.)

Disclaimer:  I don't own a single thing to do with anything I mention in this chapter or any other chapter or any other story I ever post on this website.  (So far, I've only posted 1 other story, a one-parter, that a bunch of people reviewed on.  Okay, not a bunch of people, but 6, which was enough to make me smile, especially since all 6 either promptly read this story, or had already read this story.  I feel like I have my own personal fan club!  Hehehe!)

RECAP:  Skips Chapters 1-8.  This chapter deals only with the events of Chapter 9.  (Possibly Chapter 7 also, but I highly doubt it.).  Anyway, in Chapter 9, Rory discovers that she's been accepted to both Harvard and Yale, with full scholarships to both schools.  Lorelai, naturally, is thrilled that Rory will be going to Harvard.  However, when Paris calls Rory and tells her that she (Paris) has been turned down by Harvard, Rory lies, and tells Paris that she (Rory) didn't get in either, thus deciding that she (Rory) will be going to Yale.  Paris asks her to be roommates at Yale, and Rory agrees before she realizes what she's done.  Jess is accepted to New York University, but decides not to tell anyone, because he doesn't know how he's going to pay the tuition.  Lane has been asked to do an audition for the Juilliard Institute, which is a performing arts school in New York, and enlists Lorelai and Rory's help in getting her to New York for said audition.

This chapter takes place later that same week, at the Friday night dinner.  Rory has already accepted the scholarship to Yale, but hasn't told Lorelai.  Also, pretend with me that Lorelai, Rory, and Lane were able to get Lane to New York for the audition.  (I can't think of a way, to be quite honest, so I'm skipping that part.)  Anyway, Lane has spent the day in New York, auditioning.

LESS TALKING, MORE WALKING

"C'mon, Rory, we're going to be late!"  Lorelai hollered at her daughter's closed bedroom door.

Rory opened the door, coat in hand.  "Since when do you care if we're late or not?"  She asked her mother.

"Less talking, more walking.  Since I get to tell them that you're going to Harvard, and we don't need them to pay for it."

"Um, Mom, about that…"  Rory started as they were walking out the door.

"It's not every day that I get to completely thwart my parent's evil plans to take over the world, you know.  And I didn't even have to do anything this time!  You did it all, Mini Me!"  Lorelai continued gleefully, oblivious to Rory's look of discomfort.

"Right" Rory muttered.  _How am I going to tell her that I decided to go to Yale?  That I've already sent in the acceptance letter?_

The drive to Hartford consisted of the same; Lorelai gloating about the fact that Rory was going to Harvard, and Rory staring out the window in uncomfortable silence.

"Lorelai!  Rory!  It's good to see you…on time, for once."  Emily answered the door.

"Hi Mom."

"Hi Grandma."

"Come in, come in.  Lorelai, you're looking exceptionally happy this evening." 

"I am exceptionally happy, Mom."

"Might one inquire as to why?"  Emily asked, as the three Gilmore women walked into the parlor.

"Rory got into Harvard…with a full scholarship."  Lorelai responded, with a wide grin on her face.

"That's wonderful!"  Richard exclaimed.  "Congratulations, my dear."

"Thanks, Grandpa."

"This is good news."  Emily said quietly.  "I suppose we needn't have worried about your place at Yale, after all.  Since you'll be attending Harvard, that is."

"Well…" Rory's voice trailed off; she knew her grandparents would be thrilled about her decision to attend Yale, but she didn't want her mother to get angry.

"I suppose this means you'll need a car, though.  I understand your old car was never repaired?"

"No, it wasn't."

"Richard, why don't you take Rory shopping for a new car tomorrow?"  

"I'd be delighted to.  Rory, what do you say?"

"Actually, Mom, Dad, I've got that taken care of.  I'm going to give Rory the jeep."  Lorelai interjected.

"Don't be ridiculous.  You don't want Rory driving some beat up old thing at Harvard, now do you?  After all, she will be the first Gilmore to attend school there.  All other Gilmores have gone to Yale."  Emily insisted.

"It'll be fine, Mom.  I don't want her to have to worry about a new car."

"What if she ends up stranded on the highway?  After all, Stars Hollow is quite a drive from Cambridge.  She could be sitting on the side of the road for hours, waiting for someone to pick her up."

"Mom!  The jeep is fine!  It's in great condition."

"Nonsense."

Lorelai and Emily continued their argument as Richard and Rory watched.  It became increasingly heated, until they were shouting at one another.

"I don't see why you're making such a big deal out of this, Mom!  I'm more than capable of providing a vehicle for my own daughter!"  Lorelai screamed.

"So you're going to provide the vehicle, and Rory has a scholarship, and so that's it, right?  No more humoring your mother's desire to see her daughter and granddaughter because you don't need her money anymore!"  Emily shouted right back.

"Mom!  Grandma!  Stop it!  Sit down, both of you, and be quiet for two seconds, PLEASE!"  Rory finally yelled.

Both Lorelai and Emily were so astonished at Rory's outburst, they immediately obeyed.  

"Thank you.  First of all, Grandma, the Jeep will be fine, I don't need a new car.  Secondly, Mom, the reason that the Jeep will be fine is because I'm not going to Harvard, I've already accepted the scholarship to Yale."

Everyone turned to stare at Rory. 

"What?  Why?"  Lorelai was at a loss for words, for once.

"I just decided to go to Yale, that's all."

"That's wonderful!"  Emily said warmly, hugging her granddaughter.

At that moment, Lorelai's cell phone began to ring.  

"Hello?"

"Lorelai – it's Lane.  Is Rory there?"  Lane choked out between sobs.

"Yeah, she's right here – what's wrong?"

"Good news…I was accepted to the Juilliard.  Bad news, I ran into my mother in New York."

"Oh god.  Here's Rory."  Lorelai said, and handed the phone to Rory.

"Hello?"  Rory asked, as she walked of the room.

Lorelai, Emily and Richard sat in virtual silence for the next few minutes, until Rory returned.

"Rory, dear, what's wrong?"  Emily asked her granddaughter, concerned.

"You remember Lane?"  When Emily and Richard nodded assent, she continued.  "Well, on Monday, the Juilliard Institute in New York called her, wanting to schedule an audition, and it was today.  She went, she rocked, and she was accepted on the spot.  Then, as she was leaving the school, Mrs. Kim, her mother, saw her.  Long story short, Mrs. Kim won't let Lane go."

"Whyever not?  The Juilliard is one of the finest performing arts schools in the country."  Richard asked, astonished.  "I would think that any parent would be proud to have their daughter accepted."

"Mrs. Kim is not any parent.  She's completely against any form of music, the very thought of Lane in New York probably gave her a heart attack, and the Juilliard is predominately male."  Lorelai responded.

"More specifically, the Juilliard is predominately male with non-Koreans who are most definitely not going to become doctors."  Rory added.

"That's ridiculous!"  Emily exclaimed.

"I know it, you know it, some guy named Moose knows it, but evidently Mrs. Kim doesn't know it."  Lorelai remarked.  "Anyway, Lane sounded pretty upset."

"Yeah, she's hiding out in my bedroom at the moment, having snuck out of hers."  Rory sighed, frustrated for her friend.

"So we should probably go."  Lorelai apologized.

"Of course."  Emily walked the two younger Gilmores to the front door.  "Reassure Lane; I'm sure everything will work out."

"Okay."  Rory leaned over, and hugged her grandmother.  "Bye Grandma."

"Goodbye, dear."  Emily closed the door behind her daughter and granddaughter, and then leaned against it, deep in thought.  After coming to a decision, she straightened, and walked back to the parlor.  "Richard, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

A/N – Okay, I know I said in the last chapter that all future chapters will be longer, and then I up and wrote a short chapter, but I just decided (like in the last 30 seconds) that I would leave Emily's decision until the next chapter.  But, I'm about to start writing the next chapter, as soon as I post this one, so I think everyone will live.


	11. Free at Last

A/N – Thanks for all the reviews!  I'm going to respond to a few of them individually, for once.  

Kate – There will be a lot of Trory interaction in the upcoming chapters; he was actually supposed to be in Chapter 9, which was the chapter where everyone either got accepted to or turned down from college, but it got to a good stopping place.  (Spoiler for my own story:  He and Rory don't become very good friends until they leave for college, but they're leaving within the next 3 chapters.)  Also…this story could be considered a Trory; the only reason I say it's not is because they are not going to end up together, but you'll see what I mean if you keep reading.

MaryATroryFan – I agree, the phone call did interrupt the moment; however, I was writing it in the middle of the night, and wanted to finish before I went to bed, but I was really really really tired, so I ended up rushing through it.  I'm addressing that in this chapter.  I will most likely be revising Chapter 10, though, so if you have any suggestions on how to get Lane to New York, rather than just pretend she got there, I'd love to hear 'em.  I really couldn't think of anything, and didn't want to hold the story back until I did.  (I really wanted to write the encounter between Mrs. Kim and Lane in New York.)

Firegoddess – Should we start a petition, or what?  I've never actually staged a protest before!  I liked the cliffhanger, too; I didn't actually intend for it to be a cliffhanger, but when I got there, it seemed like a good stopping place.

Tiz-nd-Az-nd-Princezz – I have actually read and reviewed some of your stories; I liked them, for the most part.  Also, like I said to Kate; this could be considered a Trory.  I just don't think it is, because of the ending, and I can't really explain more fully than that they're not going to end up together, because that would ruin it.

Rory Potter – I don't know if you intended for your review to completely crack me up, but it did.  It's okay; lots of people hate me (mostly ex-boyfriends).  As far as the two endings, I'll keep it in mind, but you might be surprised with the ending to this story…like I said above, Rory does not end up with Tristan, nor does she end up with Jess.  I mean, in real life, how many people end up marrying their high school sweethearts?  The story as I intend to write it will make sense with either a Trory or a lit ending…in fact, Rory could even (hypothetically speaking) end up with Dean again (not likely – the world knows by now that I think he's a putz).  So maybe I'll write 3 sequels, one for each of the three boys?  I haven't decided yet – wait for the next 20 chapters, and then let me know how you want the sequel, or if you even want the sequel.

Okay – Those are the reviews I wanted to respond to.  (I would respond to Concerto, also, but I think I already did, didn't I?)  

On another note…I had mentioned a couple of chapters back that I wanted to change the title of my story; I got to thinking about it some more, and decided that Second Chances is really appropriate, so I'm sticking with it, even if it's not unique or original.  (The Tristan sequel will be called Third Time's The Charm, I think.)  Also, because I'm beginning to like the idea of a Jess sequel, and a Dean sequel (Thanks Rory!), I'd like suggestions for those titles, as well.

Anyway. 

This is Chapter 11.  (Actually, it should be called Chapter 10.5, because it's really only going to hint at the sub-plot I left out of Chapter 9 (More on that in later chapters, I promise!), and resolve the cliffhanger from Chapter 10, as well as kind of resolve the issue of Lorelai's reaction to Yale.  This chapter doesn't go into any of the stuff I wanted to put into Chapter 11.

RECAP:  Skips 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.  Concerning Chapter 9…Rory and Paris are both going to Yale.  Jess was accepted to NYU, but hasn't told anyone.  Lane got an audition for the Juilliard.  Tristan was left out of Chapter 9 entirely; his subplot will be in this chapter.  Chapter 10.  Rory tells her mother and grandparents that she's going to Yale instead of Harvard.  Lane was accepted to the Juilliard on the spot following her audition; however, Mrs. Kim saw her in New York, and is now refusing to let her go to school there.  (Obviously – it's Mrs. Kim!)  Emily made a decision, and wanted to speak to Richard about it.  (Cliffhanger – what was the decision?  Read on! Hehehe.)  

This chapter takes place the next day, Saturday.

FREE AT LAST

"Mrs. Kim.  I would like to speak with you."  Emily called, looking around the cluttered antique shop.

"Yes?"  Mrs. Kim appeared from behind a rather large wooding rocking chair.

"Mrs. Kim, hello.  My name is Emily Gilmore.  I'm Rory's grandmother."

"Yes, yes.  What did you want to talk about?"  Mrs. Kim asked curtly.  "I am very busy today."

"Then perhaps I should return another day."  Emily replied, graciously.  "I was hoping that we would be able to sit down for tea while we spoke."

"Tea is fine.  One moment."  Mrs. Kim turned, and called up the stairs.  "Lane, come mind the store."

"Coming, Mama."  Lane called back down, a chill evident in her voice.

"Come with me."  Mrs. Kim led the way to the kitchen.  "Sit."  

Emily sat, and watched Mrs. Kim prepare the tea.  "Mrs. Kim, Rory told me last night that your daughter, Lane, was accepted to the Juilliard Institute in New York."

"Lane will not be going."  Mrs. Kim responded, setting the teacups on the table heavily.

"I completely agree."  Emily replied, a sly smile forming on her face.  "Nothing but trouble could come from allowing Lane to move to New York, completely unsupervised."

"Yes.  Too many hoodlums in New York.  They will ruin my daughter."

"Of course they would.  All those boys doing nothing but playing music, with no adult to guide them."

"Too many boys.  I've already decided which school Lane will attend."

"Quite right that you should do so.  Young girls such as Rory and Lane should never be trusted with such an important decision.  That is why Mr. Gilmore and I put our foot down; Rory will be attending Yale."

"Good for you."  Mrs. Kim was beginning to warm up to Emily, who seemed so charming and intelligent.

"Today's society gives children entirely too much independence.  It's always refreshing to see a parent with morals, and the will to enforce them."

"Yes.  Thank you."

"It seems absolutely ridiculous that girls of seventeen and eighteen feel that they should decide their own futures."

"Quite right."

"After all, how are they to know how to live their lives and make good choices?  They are far too young, and have nothing but our example to teach them."

"Yes."  Mrs. Kim was suddenly unsure of where the conversation was heading.

"Of course, there are some who will say that children should be allowed to make some of their own decisions.  I believe that statement is often supported with such things as, it is their life, and how will they learn to make good choices if they aren't allowed to make a few mistakes on their own?"

"What is this about?"  Mrs. Kim eyed Emily suspiciously.

"Simply this.  I have learned through personal experience, with Lorelai, that children will make their own choices and mistakes, despite everything we do for them."

"Lane is a good girl."

"Lorelai was, also.  However, I realized, too late, that there comes a point in time where children must be allowed to think they are making their own decisions, so that we may continue to guide them without the risk of the child disregarding our words completely."

Mrs. Kim didn't respond, instead taking a sip of tea.

"I think that such a time may have come with Lane.  With that in mind, I have come to make a proposal."

"What do you mean, such a time may have come with Lane?"

"Mrs. Kim, I'm going to be completely honest.  I believe that Lane may attempt to attend the Juilliard, whether you approve or not.  I would like to propose something, where Lane will be able to attend this school, and you will still be able to guide her through these difficult years."

"And what would that proposal be?"

"Rory was awarded a full scholarship to Yale.  Therefore, the money Mr. Gilmore and I had said aside to pay for her education is no longer necessary.  I would like to propose that Lane be allowed to attend the Juilliard.  Mr. Gilmore and I will obtain an apartment for her in New York.  We will also employ someone to act as chaperone."

"A chaperone?"

"A person, approved by you, to live with Lane and provide her with proper supervision while she is in New York."

Mrs. Kim was silent.  She rose, and busied herself with making more tea while she thought about Emily's offer.  She knew that Lane was unhappy, and that her daughter truly wanted to attend the Juilliard.  Lane had expressed interest in working with autistic children; a degree in music might actually help her achieve that goal.  But Mrs. Kim worried about her daughter, in a big city, on her own.  A chaperone in New York essentially solved her dilemma.  She turned back to Emily.  "I will accept your proposal, provided we find a suitable chaperone."

Emily smiled, and stood.  "Thank you, Mrs. Kim.  I will make the appropriate arrangements, and let you know when I have found a few candidates."

Mrs. Kim nodded, watching as Emily walked out of the kitchen.  

Emily passed Lane on her way out of the store.  "Good morning, Lane."

"Good morning, Mrs. Gilmore.  I…I heard what you and my mother were talking about.  Thank you."  Lane offered Rory's grandmother a tentative smile, incredibly grateful for what the woman had just done, but still slightly apprehensive about Mrs. Gilmore's motivation.

Emily smiled warmly at her granddaughter's best friend.  "You're welcome."  She turned, and left the store.

"Mama!"  Lane called.  "May I go to Rory's?"

"Be back in half an hour."

"Okay, Mama, I will.  Bye!"  She called over her shoulder, already dashing out the front door.

Lane ran all the way to Rory's house, and let herself in.  She found Rory on the phone.

"Don't tell Paris; she'd probably have an aneurysm if she found out that you were accepted to Harvard when she and I were both turned down."  Rory turned when she heard Lane come in, and held up a finger, indicating that she'd be off the phone in just a minute.  She laughed at something that the other person on the phone had said.  "Well, hey.  Lane just got here, so I have to go."  Pause.  "Okay, I will.  Bye!"  She hung up the phone, and turned to Lane.  "Hey, what's up?  Tristan says hi.  You're in a good mood!"

"Hi, Tristan.  Your grandmother just talked my mom into letting me go to the Juilliard!"  Lane exclaimed, her face glowing with happiness. 

"What?  How?"  Rory was amazed.

"I heard something about an apartment, with a chaperone.  But, even if my mom moves to New York with me, that'll be okay, as long as I get to study music!"

The two girls went on about how cool it was that Lane was going to be able to attend the Juilliard, until Lorelai burst in.

"Free at last, thank god almighty I'm free at last!"  Lorelai exclaimed, dramatically collapsing on the couch.  "Lane – you're incredibly happy for someone whose dreams have been shattered."

Lane and Rory exchanged a glance, before Rory shrugged, indicating that her grandmother may not have told Lorelai her intentions, either.  

"Your mom convinced my mom to let me go to the Juilliard."  Lane explained.

"Oh."  Lorelai looked confused, and then realization hit, rapidly followed by quickly concealed anger.  

"Anyway, I need to get going…my mom gave me 30 minutes, which means I have about 45 seconds left to get home."  Lane said her goodbyes, before dashing out the door and running home.

"So, Mini-me…we haven't talked about your decision to go to Yale yet."

"No, we haven't."

"So…why Yale?"

Rory shrugged.  "I don't know…I guess, I got kind of used to the idea of going there, back when we thought I wouldn't get into Harvard.  So I just kinda figured that I'd go to whichever school I was accepted to.  It didn't occur to me that I might get into both.  Then, when I did…I knew that Grandma and Grandpa really wanted me to go to Yale.  But, our dream has always been for me to go to Harvard.  I didn't know what to do…no matter which school I went to, someone would be upset or disappointed.  Jess told me to just go to whichever school would make me happy, because I would be the one going to school there for four years.  Then, when I talked to Paris, she was really upset that she hadn't gotten into Harvard, and kept accusing me that I had.  Anyway, I told her that I was turned down, too, and that seemed to calm her down a lot.  When I told her I had gotten into Yale, she told me that she did too, then asked me to be roommates with her, if I live in the dorms, and I kind've…agreed."  

"Oh…so it was basically an attempt to keep Paris from causing you gross bodily harm, and you got trapped in it."

"Yeah…but not entirely.  I mean, once I told Paris that I was going to Yale, it just felt…I don't know, it felt…right."  Rory struggled to explain herself.

Lorelai frowned, thinking.  "Rory…if you want to go to Yale for yourself, I'll support you.  I just don't want you to give up your dream of Harvard to make my parents happy."

"Don't worry, Mom.  Grandma and Grandpa…well, they did have something to do with my decision, but I'm not going to Yale for them."

"Okay, good."  Lorelai leaned over and hugged her daughter.  "So you and Paris are going to be roommates, huh?"

Rory groaned in response, burying her face in her hands.  "How do I get myself into these situations?"

Lorelai laughed.  "You have my luck, that's all…and my talent of being able to speak without the words passing through your brain first."

Rory grinned back at her mother.  "Maybe it won't be so bad…and, it's still months away; Paris could always decide she hates me again, and back out."

"There is always that possibility.  Hey, that reminds me.  I need coffee."

"How does that remind you that you need coffee?"

"Well, I just remembered that I need coffee, and since we were talking about you and Paris being roommates, that's obviously what made me remember."

"Obviously," Rory replied teasingly.

"So, c'mon, let's go!"

"Alright, just let me grab my coat."

A/N – Okay, that's it for Chapter 10.5.  I hope everyone likes it, but if not, give me suggestions, and I'll revise.  I'm also going to post the revised version of Chapter 1 in the next few days.  I promise I will.  The real Chapter 11 will be coming soon!


	12. You Learn Something New Every Day

A/N – I just realized, after re-reading my plot outline of the REAL Chapter 11, that I can't write it yet.  I have to do a Chapter 10.75.  LOL.  Too complicated, too many sub-plots!  But…I don't think I can really leave it out.  Hmm…:: scratches head in puzzlement:: I wonder if possibly I could include it in this chapter.  I can't just leave it out, because I hinted at it in Chapter 10.5/11, whatever you want to call it, and leaving it out would be really out of character for one of the major characters.  Okay, this is getting confusing.

On a different note, I'm going to respond to another review…Ally – Luke and Lorelai may be getting together; I'm not really sure yet.  If they do, it'll happen sometime between Chapters 19 and 28.  On re-reading my summaries for the next several chapters, I think that they do get together, because there is a sub-plot where Rory is suspicious that Lorelai is hiding something, and I don't really know what else it could be…On the other hand, I've never really liked the idea of Luke and Lorelai getting together, even though it's obvious that a) they're into each other, and b) they're perfect for each other.  So, we'll see.  Once everyone leaves for college, though, the story is going to focus on the kids at school, not the people at home.  The story's already going to be split between 3 or 4 different cities – I don't think I can handle keeping 6 cities, and storylines, straight, so Hartford and Stars Hollow are most likely going to be left out.  Luke and Lorelai may get together, but if they do, all that'll be in the story is them telling Rory and Jess that they're together.  I may have to do a spin-off, telling this story from Luke/Lorelai's POV.  Geez…it's getting too complicated again.  

Also – firegoddess; The final project for my Civics class a couple of years ago was to change a school policy – my group wanted to have a salad bar a lunch, and we were the only group to actually achieve our goal.  I think a petition might work, plus if you, me, and all of our friends, plus all of their friends, plus all of their friends, started calling up the station, we'd be able to get somewhere…the annoyance factor, if nothing else.  I mean, it's worth a shot, right?  So, everyone in St. Louis started calling up the WB, and telling them to at the very least re-broadcast Tuesday's episode, we might get somewhere; but we'd have to do it fast, considering it's already Monday.

Alrighty; here's what I'll do – if anyone would like to write a spin-off from L/L POV, let me know, and I'll send you what plot summaries I have, so that you can get started.  If anyone wants the L/L POV spin-off, but doesn't want to write it, give me ideas on what to have happen, not involving anyone under the age of 20.  (That stuff I can just get out of this story.)  I'll see what I can do with it. At this point, I'm not promising anything more than the true Trory sequel, but I'll try for the Jess sequel, the Dean sequel, and the L/L POV spin-off.  

Also, for those of you who wanted additional parts to my story The Gray, at about 5 this morning, I came up with at least the titles for both a prequel and a sequel, so I'm probably going to go ahead and write them, though I'm not necessarily going to post them.

Okay – I've kind've thought through the problem mentioned in the very first paragraph of my rambling author's note, so here goes the REAL Chapter 11. (Sort of.)  For simplicity's sake, I'm calling it Chapter 12.

RECAP:   Skips Chapters 1-8 and most of Chapter 9.  The only part from Chapter 9 that's important to this chapter is the fact that Jess was accepted to NYU, but hasn't told Rory yet, because he doesn't know how he's going to pay for it. In Chapter 10, Rory 'fesses up to the grandparents and Lorelai that she's going to Yale, not Harvard.  Lane calls, in tears, because while she's been accepted to the Juilliard, Mrs. Kim saw her in New York, and now won't let her go.  Chapter 11 – Emily convinces Mrs. Kim to let Lane go to school in New York.  Tristan calls Rory, and tells her that he was accepted to Harvard.  (That was a very very minor part of Chapter 11, and kind've had to be inferred, but there's more of it in this chapter, I promise.)  Lane tells Rory and Lorelai what Emily did.  Rory and Lorelai discuss Rory's decision of Yale over Harvard.   

This chapter picks up a few minutes after the last one left off – Rory and Lorelai have just arrived at Luke's.  (Also, I'm fairly sure this is the last chapter to happen on the same day.)

YOU LEARN SOMETHING NEW EVERY DAY

Lorelai and Rory opened the door to the diner, and walked to their customary place at the counter.  Lorelai began bickering with Luke over whether or not he was going to give her coffee, while Rory looked around for Jess.

"Hey, Luke, where's Jess?"  She asked, interrupting the banter.  

"Upstairs.  Go on up."  

She stood, and started towards the stairs, before Luke stopped her, and handed her a cup of coffee.  "Here."  He grunted.

"Hey, no fair!  How come she gets coffee and I don't!"  Lorelai whined.

Luke shot Rory a grin, before turning back to Lorelai.

Shaking her head, Rory ran up the stairs.  She let herself into the apartment, and saw Jess sitting at the table with someone, drinking a soda.

"Tristan?  What are you doing here?"

Tristan turned, and replied.  "Oh hey, Rory.  I was bored, so I went for a drive.  Ended up here.  Jess was just expressing his views on how the Two Towers wasn't any truer to the book than the Fellowship of the Ring was."

Rory laughed.  "He'll go on for hours about that…I think he has a secret crush on Liv Tyler."

"No I don't!  It's all about Galadriel."  Jess protested.

"Riiight."  Rory teased.

"I think both of you are crazy…Eowyn is definitely the hottest.  She's the one who takes down Sauron in the end…sexy."

Rory and Jess stared at Tristan.  

"You mean you've actually read the books?"  Rory asked, surprised.

"Yeah."  Tristan shrugged.  "The Hobbit was required reading in junior high – after that, I kinda got hooked."

"You learn something new every day…" Rory joked.  "Anyway, sorry I cut you off this morning; Lane was going through a crisis.  So you got into Harvard?"

"Yeah.  My dad really wanted me to go to Yale, but I got turned down.  I'd rather go to Harvard, anyway."

"I'm going there.  Yale, I mean…and somehow, I got myself roped into being roommates with Paris."

Jess sat back quietly, watching as the two continued discussing the merits of their Ivy League colleges.  _I think…that there may be something there.  What is it about them?  I mean, it's obvious why Tristan would be into Rory, and I guess I can kind of see why she would like him.  But…do they really like each other?  I can tell Tristan really wants a friend with a brain…not that I blame him; from what Rory's said of the Chiltonites, I'd be lonely, too.  She said that he seems to have developed more substance since military school, too, so that's gotta make his life tough.  I think that I'm just grateful he's going to Harvard, and she's going to Yale.  They won't have a whole lot of opportunity to explore whether or not there's really something between them beyond friendship.  But…I think…if Rory decides that she really wants to be with Tristan…well, I'm not going to give her up without a fight, but if she'd be happier with him than she is with me, I'm going to have to respect that.  I'm not going to pull a Dean on her. _ With a start, he realized that both Tristan and Rory were looking at him curiously.

"Earth to Jess…" Tristan said, waving a hand in front of Jess's face.

"Sorry, man…not being Ivy League-bound, I spaced out for a few minutes." 

"Jess…you could've gotten into a good school, if you had applied anywhere.  Whatever you say, I know you don't want to spend the rest of your life in Stars Hollow, working at the diner."

Jess grinned.  "Actually…I'm going back to New York.  I was accepted to NYU."

"Really!?!  That's great!"  Rory squealed, launching herself at him, and engulfing him in a hug.

He hugged her back.  "Yeah – I didn't tell you at first, because I wasn't sure how I was going to pay for it, but I got a few scholarships, and a couple of grants, and then, when Luke found out I was accepted, he took out a loan on the diner for the rest."

"Jess!  I'm so happy for you!"  She kissed him.  

Tristan leaned back in his chair, watching the two.  _It'd be great to have a girl like Rory so excited for me.  Who am I kidding?  It'd be great to have Rory so excited for me.  But…I know she cares about Jess a lot, and she's happy with him.  Maybe my time will come, what with Jess in New York, me in Cambridge, and Rory in New Haven.  I'll be a lot closer to her than he will be.  At the very least, I'm going to have to keep an eye on her.  I mean, he and I are becoming friends, so it's only right to look after his interests.  I have no ulterior motive…I really don't._

Jess and Rory suddenly remembered that Tristan was still there, and broke apart.  

"Hey, do you guys want to go see a movie, or something?"  Rory asked.

"Sure."

"Why not?"  

Rory waited as Jess and Tristan grabbed their coats, and the three teens ran downstairs.

After a cursory farewell to Lorelai and Luke, they were off.

Lorelai watched her daughter climb into Tristan's car, and sighed, before turning back to Luke.

"My mother convinced Mrs. Kim to let Lane go to the Juilliard in New York."  She said softly.

"Really.  That's good.  Jess is going to school in New York, too."

"Jess is going to college?"  Lorelai asked, surprised.

"Yeah.  I think it had something to do with him not wanting to sit around here, waiting for Rory to come home on weekends."

"Wow…maybe you were right, and she is a good influence on him."

"He's a good kid.  He's just had some problems."

"Yeah."  Lorelai drained the last dregs of coffee from her cup.  "Well, I should get going."

"Yeah."

"Bye."  

"Bye."  

Lorelai walked out of the diner, lost in thought.  _I wonder what possessed my mother to even attempt to convince Mrs. Kim to let Lane go?  More than that, I wonder how she succeeded!  Wow…Lane's going to New York, so is Jess.  Rory's going to be in New Haven…this town is going to be so empty, without the kids._  By now Lorelai was just wandering, and not really paying attention to where she was going, until she ran into Dean…literally.

"Oof.  Oh, sorry, Lorelai, I didn't see you."  Dean said, recovering quickly.

"Me too.  I didn't see you, either, I mean.  In fact, I haven't seen you in a long time.  What've you been up to?"

"School, mainly."

"Oh.  Are you going to college next year?"

"Yeah, I just found out yesterday.  I was accepted to a tech school back in Chicago."

"That's cool…what are you going to study?"

"It's a work-study program; I'll be apprenticing with a mechanic in the afternoons and on weekends, and studying for my master mechanic's certificate in between.  I should be able to open my own shop in a couple of years."

"Good for you, Dean."

"Thanks…I heard Rory's going to Yale."

"Yeah, she got a full scholarship.  She's really excited."

"Well…tell her congratulations for me."

"Will do."

"See you later."

"Bye, Dean."  Lorelai stared after him regretfully.  _Even Dean's leaving.  This town's population is going to get a whole lot smaller.  Taylor will have to post a new sign.  Which means he'll want a fund-raiser.  Which means a new festival, which means junk food.  Junk food.  Hmm…Rory's gone to a movie; that means if I eat quick, I can get some gummy bears!  Hehehe.  _With that thought, Lorelai turned, and headed towards Doose's Market.

Later that evening, after the movie, Jess was walking Rory home.  

"So…you're going back to New York, huh?"  Rory finally broke the silence.

"Yep."

"Wow."  She said, flatly.

Hearing her tone, Jess stopped, and turned to face Rory. "Hey…what's wrong?"

"I'm not sure…it's just…I kind've thought you'd be here, y'know?  Like, we'd be able to see each other on weekends and stuff."

Jess looked at her thoughtfully.  "Rory…I couldn't just sit around here, waiting for my Ivy League girlfriend to come home, while I was doing nothing with my life."

"I know…it's just…New York is so far away."  Rory murmured, tears threatening in her eyes.

"Hey, c'mere."  Jess replied softly, pulling her into a hug.  "It'll be fine, I promise.  Neither one of us is leaving for months.  And, when we do leave, we can still talk to each other every day.  Plus, I don't think there's a law that says I can't come home on weekends, too."

Rory pulled away from him slightly, staring into his eyes, a slight smile forming through her sadness.  "It won't be the same."

Jess sighed, and stepped away from her completely.  "It never is, Rory.  Things, people, places…everything changes with time.  But, growing up doesn't mean we'll grow apart."

Rory looked down at her shoes, before whispering, "I love you, Jess."

A smile broke out on Jess's face.  "I love you, too, Ror…and I promise…we'll make it work."

When Rory didn't respond, Jess sighed, and started walking again.  After a moment, Rory followed, and the two continued their journey in silence.__

A/N – Okay, this chapter didn't end up really addressing what I was going to address, but I suppose that's okay.  I think I'm just going to leave the sub-plot of Lorelai and Emily getting into a fight over Lane out, because it just won't write itself.  The next chapter is going to be their graduation, so be forewarned; about 6 months are getting skipped.  Question, though:  Should Paris find out that Rory lied?  I mean, I do have some conflict between the two coming up, but I could add that into it; would make things interesting.  But, it would also run the risk of making the relationship between the two girls TOO volatile.  Also, I know that there wasn't a whole lot of Troryness in this chapter, but I promise that there will be more, as soon as everyone gets off to college.  (I mean, c'mon – He's going to be a lot closer distance-wise to Rory than Jess, and he promised himself he'd watch over her for Jess.  Plus (hint, hint), he isn't going to have too great of a time at Harvard.) I know he seemed to drop off the planet, but…this story is really writing itself, and I'm only typing it, y'know?  (The two chapters I forced, 7 and 8, are the two I don't like!)  Even after I did the plot summaries, and even though I'm using them as a guideline, stuff just isn't happening the way I thought it would.  Entire subplots are being left out, and new ones are adding themselves.  But, I'm satisfied, because it is working.   Also, expect an edited Chapter 10 in the near future – MaryATroryFan gave me a suggestion on how to get Lane to New York, and it was such a good suggestion, I literally smacked myself because I didn't think of it.  

Another thing.  Apologies for the constant Tolkien/Lord of the Rings references…I finally got my new DVD player to work, and so can watch Fellowship, I just went to see the Two Towers (I was very disappointed that Galadriel didn't give Sam the earth and seed – could mean that they're going to leave that part out of Return of the King, as well), my mom got the extended version DVD for her birthday (the 3rd), and I started re-reading the books.  Obviously, I'm obsessing.  Hehehe.  Tolkien really IS the father of modern sci-fi and fantasy, though.  References to his works are EVERYWHERE in those genres.  (For example, anyone who saw the TNT series Babylon 5, did you guys notice that the home world of the Shadows was Zhaha Dum…seems a bit like Khazha Dum to me (spelling may be off)…where the shadow lives…gee, let me think, where'd J. Michael Strazinsky (creator of Babylon 5) get THAT one.  I wonder.  And there are thousands of references like that one!  They're all over the place.)  Anyone who hasn't read the Tolkien books, but only seen the movies, I HIGHLY recommend that you read them!  The movies will make a lot more sense (considering they really aren't true to the books) if you do.  The books are incredibly good, even if you're not ordinarily into fantasy.  They're actually written as more of a history than a novel.  And, to think, all Tolkien (a language professor) wanted to do was create a basis for his made-up languages!  I wish I had that…talent, skill, luck, whatever you want to call it.  Anyway, I'm going to stop rambling now, and actually post this chapter.


End file.
